A memorable summer
by SunniGummi
Summary: Rose and Emmett decide to take Maddie with them for their summer vacation. But things don't always go as planned, a big brother is sometimes even more annoying than a mosquito buzzing and a big sister doesn't like to be ignored. Warning: spanking in later chapters. Hate it? Don't read it!
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys!**

**I know, it took me forever to finally post this story ... but yeah ;-)**

**This story is Jamie's wish and I really hope you like it!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Twilight, Stephenie Meyer does!**

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"Maddie, we'll have blankets at the cottage. You don't need to take this one with you," Rosalie said with a sigh. They were currently standing in Maddie's room, going through her closet to decide which clothes she might need to bring.

"But I like it," Maddie replied and hugged the big, dark blue thing to herself. She would never get cold so she didn't really need it, but it smelled of home and felt so soft that she wanted to bring it anyways.

Rose nodded, then walked back into the closet, saying, "Fine. Take it downstairs and put it in the car so we won't forget it."

Maddie grinned like a Cheshire Cat and skipped out of her room.

She was _so_ excited.

Emmett and Rose had told her a week ago that they wanted to spend a month away from Forks and the family and everything. They wanted her to join them, so she would have some real holidays after a more or less difficult year of school.

In addition Edward was dating Bella and since her leg was broken, he and Alice would spend a lot of time at her house. Esme had accepted a job as an interior designer, and so she would be working a lot during the next two weeks. And Carlisle ... well, Carlisle was working at the hospital and due to the holidays he was working overtime ... more than any human possibly could.

And that would leave Maddie at home with Jasper - not an ideal combination. They would probably claw each other's eyes out.

So right now Rosalie, Emmett and Maddie were busy packing Emmett's car, because they wanted to leave soon.

The trip would lead them to Minnesota where Esme had bought a house a few years ago. It had access to the lake and was surrounded by forest - perfect for a nice, calm holiday.

"Have you packed everything, dear?" Esme asked when she saw Maddie descend the stairs.

"No, I packed just a little. I'm not sure what I'll need, so Rose is going through my closet now."

"But you don't need to pack too much, there is a washing machine and a dryer," she told her before squinting her eyes at the blanket Maddie was holding. "Maddie ... why are you bringing your blanket? There are plenty at the house."

"I don't want any blanket, I want my blanket," she replied with a little indignation detectable in her voice.

"That's all right, sweetie, I was just wondering. You know you'll have a special room all to yourself," Esme informed her daughter. She and Carlisle had visited a few weeks ago to decorate the house and additionally prepare a room for Maddie, because they had already guessed that she'd want to join Emmett and Rosalie.

Maddie smirked; she couldn't suppress the joy she was feeling. It was so exciting to have holidays, and to be with Rose and Emmett only.

"Aw, you're excited, aren't you?" Esme cooed and approached her daughter, then patted her cheek.

"I think it's gonna be great."

Esme nodded. "I think so, too, sweetie. We'll come visit soon."

"You'll come visit in about two weeks, Mom, that's not soon." Maddie giggled.

"But two weeks isn't long, either."

"Uh! I need to bring my gameboy!" Maddie suddenly exclaimed and hurried into the living room, looking around feverishly. "Huh, where the hell is it?"

She had left it on the couch two days ago ... or something.

Esme cleared her throat to gain her daughter's attention once more. "Maddie. I told you countless times to watch your things and not let them lie around the house."

"I _need_ it, Mom, where is it?"

Esme sighed, seeing that Maddie wasn't interested in getting scolded right now but only wanted to know where her precious gameboy was. "I gave it to Emmett, he put it on the back seats of his car."

"Awesome, thanks!" Maddie smiled, then turned around and ran into the garage.

She placed her blanket on the rear seats, right next to where her gameboy was. Phew, she wouldn't go anywhere without that one. Long car rides could get quite boring, but this little friend would definitely help make the time pass faster. Besides, the house they were heading for was a little secluded with no larger cities around and they couldn't leave the house much for the first couple of days. Alice said that the first few days would still be quite sunny, but then they'd have thunderstorms and rain. They were still hoping that a weather like that would keep possible vacationers away, so they could enjoy their peace and quiet.

Looking over the backrest of the seat, she saw that Emmett had already placed his own as well as Rose's suitcase into the trunk.

They really didn't need to pack much. It was summer, and therefore shorts and skirts and T-shirts were the main clothes.

"Here we go," Rose said when she entered the garage and put Maddie's suitcase into the trunk, right next to the other ones.

"What did you pack for me?" Maddie asked curiously, climbed down from the rear seats and leaned against the side of the car, watching her sister push the suitcase further into the trunk to make sure it couldn't tumble over.

"Clothes. Everything you'll need, Maddie," Rose replied and took a step back, then looked at her little sister.

"But … you didn't pack the clothes Alice bought for me, right?" Maddie asked while making a face. Alice had been so excited when she got the vision of Maddie going on a vacation with Emmett and Rose, that she had immediately jumped into a car and then driven to Seattle where she had spent a whole afternoon buying summer clothes for her.

"We'll take them with us just to make her happy, okay? You don't need to wear them if you don't like them."

Maddie sighed. "Okay ..."

Alice was a little controlling at times and she sometimes overstepped a line without actually noticing. Yes, this was only about clothes, but still – Maddie wanted to be left alone when it came to clothes. She knew what she liked and she knew what she didn't like, so Alice should learn to accept that.

Now _finally_ everything was packed, the car was fueled to the brim and they had already said Goodbye to Carlisle before he left for work. Yes, it really seemed like he was always working, and it annoyed the crap out of Maddie. But she didn't want to complain too much, because he enjoyed being a doctor and it was important to keep up appearances. Plus he was father to six children, he definitely wouldn't be able to feed them all with only a part-time job. Appearances … sometimes they lost themselves just to maintain appearances.

But alas, Carlisle had promised to spend two weeks of the holidays with them and Maddie was looking forward to that.

However, right now she was only giddy with excitement to have two whole weeks with only Rose and Emmett until their parents would come join them.

"Do we leave now?" Maddie asked and smiled at Rose.

Rose let out a light laugh, then patted Maddie on the head.

"You're not even wearing shoes yet."

Maddie frowned. "So? We'll be sitting in the car, what do I need shoes for?"

"We'll be gone for four weeks. You'll need some sooner or later. Besides, we'll stop for a hunt today," Rosalie remarked and went to the open passenger door of the car, checking the glovebox for a map of the area they were heading for.

"We do? Why?"

What a stupid question.

"It's a new place we are going to so it's better to be full when we arrive," Rosalie explained, suddenly a brand-new map in hand. She looked it over, then placed it onto the passenger seat.

"Okay." Maddie nodded then walked up the flight of stairs into the house to get some shoes. "Hey, you didn't pack too much weird stuff for me, right?" she asked carefully before she would be leaving the garage.

Rose smirked. "I didn't pack _any_ weird stuff for you."

She knew why Maddie asked. When Alice had gone shopping for Maddie because she knew they would go to a lake and be doing a lot of swimming and just lying around doing nothing, she went a little overboard. Maddie hadn't been too enthusiastic about the amount and especially the type of clothes Alice had gotten for her.

_Skirts?_ She had been forced to wear a skirt for a whole year already so she actually didn't want that stuff near her now.

"Go put on some shoes and I'll tell Emmett that we are ready to leave."

Maddie nodded and walked inside with Rose following her. She then watched her sister ascend the stairs before heading for the closet in the foyer. Opening the closet door and grabbing her favourite pair of sneakers, she quickly put them on her feet, not even bothering to tie the laces.

"Tiny!"

Maddie turned around and looked up. "Emmy!" she mimicked his tone of voice.

Emmett was standing at the bottom of the stairs, smiling broadly. "Hurry, let's go!"

"Yay!" she exclaimed and bounced over to him, hugging him around the waist.

"Excited?" he asked while walking with her towards the kitchen.

"Nah … it'll be boring, for sure," she said and giggled when he let out a playful growl.

Before they reached the kitchen however, they saw Esme leaning against the backrest of the couch in the living room. She smiled at them, but her eyes seemed sad.

"Oh Mom," Emmett said and approached her with quick steps before burying her in a big bear hug. "Don't be sad ... two weeks is only half a month."

Esme chuckled, wiping at her eyes once Emmett loosened the embrace.

"Yes, it won't be long," she affirmed and nodded her head, trying to hide the dash of sadness that was making her unable to keep the venom from welling up in her eyes.

"Mom, we bring our phones!" Maddie exclaimed in what she hoped was a soothing tone of voice and walked over to her.

"Keep it with you at all times, dear," Esme said and held her arm out, inviting her daughter in for a hug.

"I will."

"Charged, Maddie," Esme reminded her.

"Yup."

Esme watched Maddie nod her head, then turned to look at Emmett. "Take good care of her, you hear, Emmett?"

Emmett smirked. "I'll guard her like gold, Mom, don't you worry."

That made Maddie snort and roll her eyes - Esme was still treating her like a five-year-old with ADHD.

"And you be good for your siblings, all right? Do as you're told, don't give them any trouble, angel."

"I won't give them any trouble ... and I hope they won't give _me_ any trouble, Mom," she countered and eyed her brother suspiciously when all he did was grin.

At that moment Rosalie descended the stairs, her purse in one hand while she pushed a pair of sunglasses up into her hair with the other one.

"You're worried, Esme," Rosalie remarked when she came to a halt right in front of the three. "Don't be."

Esme sighed. "Call me as soon as you arrive, all right? Not a moment later."

Rosalie laughed. "Sure."

Then she turned towards Maddie and fished a mobile phone charger from her purse. "You forgot something, Maddie."

"Oops," Maddie said and couldn't help but laugh at the stern look her Mom gave her at seeing that.

"What did I _just_ tell you? How can you forget something like that?" Esme asked while putting her hands on her hips.

"Sorry Mom," Maddie replied in between giggles and wound the cord of the charger around her wrist. "I thought it was in my suitcase."

Esme held up a finger. "Remember: Keep your phone with you -"

"- at all times," her three children finished for her.

She sighed at hearing them say that, but then smirked. It was a ground rule, and they had probably heard it more times than they could count.

"We need to go now, I don't want to lose time in the evening rush hour traffic," Rosalie explained after checking her wristwatch, then looked in between the others.

"Righto," Emmett said, then gave his mother another mighty hug. "We're off, Mom! I'll miss you!"

"I'll miss you too, Emmy." She smiled, but venom was clearly visible in her eyes again.

Then she grabbed Maddie by the hand and pulled her in for a hug. "I'll see you in two weeks, honey. Enjoy your holidays."

"I will, Mommy." But then she pushed her bottom lip out when Esme loosened the embrace and turned towards Rose. "So you'll only miss _Em_?"

Esme gasped. "Oh sweetheart, I'll miss _all_ of you!"

"That's better," Maddie rebuked and eyed her mother with narrowed eyes ... she was just messing with her in hopes that it would distract her from being sad.

Esme placed a hand on either side of her face and gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead.

"Two weeks, baby."

Maddie nodded, then skipped over to the kitchen to make her siblings get a go on. She was growing impatient, because she really wanted to leave and start her holidays.

"Rosalie, there is a list of all the important phone numbers on the fridge. The spare key is in the toolbox in the garage. If you need more washing powder, you'll also find it in the garage. We bought -"

Rosalie smiled and nodded. "It's all right, Esme." They hugged and Esme gently stroked her blonde locks.

"Lock the doors at night and -"

_Lock the doors at night ..._ That made Rosalie laugh out loud. "We'll be fine, Mom," she said, then went with Emmett and Maddie into the garage.

They quickly got in the car so that Esme wouldn't be able to hurry after them, then drove out of the garage with screeching tires.

But Esme was standing at the front door now, watching her three children leave. "Buckle up and drive safely!" she called, then waved after them, an uneasy look in her eyes.

And then they disappeared from view.

* * *

They drove on for hours and hours, until Emmett suddenly pulled onto a little path in the woods after Rose had given him a curt nod.

Maddie had been playing with her gameboy, so when she noticed the car slowing down, she looked up from her game with a confused facial expression.

"Huh?" she asked. Her attention had been diverted, so she had nothing brighter to say at the moment.

"Hunting!" Emmett said, reached back and patted the side of Maddie's calf since she sat right behind him with her feet propped up against the back of his seat.

"Are we close to the lake yet?" Maddie asked and bent forward to look out of the windshield.

"Two more hours," Rose said while taking her eyes off the map in her hands. She looked over her shoulder at Maddie, smiling brightly.

But Maddie just sighed and rubbed at her eyes.

Sitting in the car was boring, she wanted to go swimming! There would be a lake, yay!

But to be honest, their hunt was quite nice and indeed a good idea to make the drive seem less boring.

Maddie caught a mountain lion, and after all three of them felt full and satisfied, they returned to the car. Rosalie made Maddie change into a clean hoodie - not just because she wanted the car to stay clean and stain-free, but because they didn't know if people might see them when they'd arrive at the house. It would be dark outside, but they still didn't want to risk someone seeing bloodstains on Maddie's shirt.

It was indeed dark when they arrived at the lake house, but with their enhanced eye sight it didn't make any difference if there was daylight or not.

Emmett parked the car in the driveway and after he got out, he couldn't help but whistle when his eyes fell on the house Esme had chosen for them.

It was one of the biggest lake homes in the area, and it looked perfect. Northern white cedar half-log siding, red cedar shakes and a beautiful front yard with a few trees all around to offer them shade and more privacy.

"It's a pretty house, isn't it?" Rosalie asked and rounded the car to stand next to her husband. He put an arm around her waist and gave her a kiss on her temple.

"I love it!"

They heard Maddie shutting the car door, and then she gasped. "That lake looks so awesome!" she exclaimed.

"Tz. Mad, hello? Turn around and look at the house!" Emmett told her in a fake chiding tone of voice.

"Huh?" she asked, then whipped her head around and a big smile formed on her face. "Wow, that's ours?"

"It is," Rosalie affirmed, then stalked up the wooden stairs and onto the front porch. She fished the keys from her purse and opened the entry door for them to get in.

"Shall we look around first?" she asked, but Emmett and Maddie had already pushed past her and were running around the house to look at everything.

It was a four-bedroom home with a beautiful open dining kitchen, loft living room and a big master bedroom with a balcony on the upper floor. A big smile spread across Emmett's face when he noticed that the master bath upstairs had dark marble tiles and a jacuzzi.

The garage was big enough to hold three cars, and the house had its own jetty. And luckily they wouldn't need to go shopping or anything anytime soon, because Esme had stocked the house with everything they might possibly need for the duration of their stay.

"Where's my room?" Maddie asked and pulled on her sister's sleeve. "It's not upstairs."

"That is for a very simple reason." Rosalie smiled and indicated for Maddie to follow after her. She walked through the living room and further to the right until she came to a stop in front of a room to which the door was ajar.

"Go on in," Rose told her and took a step to the side so Maddie could enter her room for the next four weeks.

Pushing against the door, Maddie immediately started smiling like Christmas came early. Esme knew Maddie had always wanted to have a room in the basement, but she didn't really like the thought of her daughter practically living underground. That's why she chose a room on the ground floor for Maddie, with a huge glass window giving her a beautiful panoramic view of the lake. Everything was made of light wood in this room and the walls were painted in a very light blue. There was a shelf full of books, a littl desk and comfortable looking bed in the middle of the room with a turquoise coloured bedspread that immediately caught Maddie's eye. It was one of her favourite colours and Esme hadn't forgot. And then - oh! - Maddie ran past the bed and let herself fall into a huge purple beanbag chair.

With a happy sigh she looked around again and delight shone in her golden eyes.

This room was remarkably smaller than her room at home in Forks, but she somehow liked this one a lot more.

Seeing that her sister was obviously more than just content with her room, Rosalie laughed and dropped down next to Maddie, poking her in the side. "You like it, hm?"

"I love it!"

"We should call Esme and thank her, don't you think?"

Maddie nodded, then quickly reached into her jeans pocket. A slight frown appeared on her face, which grew more and more prominent as she patted down her pockets but obviously couldn't find what she was looking for. She stuck her hands into the front pocket of her hoodie, but after less than a second they came out empty again. "Rosie?" she said with an apologetic smile and bit her lip. "I think I forgot to bring my phone."

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**And that was the first chapter! Don't worry, it'll get more exciting soon but first they needed to arrive at the lake!**

**Now please REVIEW and let me know what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi guys!**

**Thank you for your reviews! I'm glad you liked the first chapter!**

**Maddie is physically fourteen years old. I have other stories with her in case you need a little more info about her. Or just ask me!**

**Now ... where was I? Oh, yes ... this chapter is something I just whipped up because I didn't want you to wait any longer. Have a virus on my netbook and haven't been able to take care of that yet. The problem is that the whole story as well as chapters of my other stories are on that little thing ... just hope the stuff isn't lost. That would suck major ass, seriously.**

**Now enjoy the second chapter, please ;-)**

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Rosalie just looked at Maddie, her eyes unblinking.

After a moment of nothing but silence – which made Maddie squirm a little and avert her eyes – Rosalie pushed her tongue against the inside of her cheek before speaking again.

"You cannot be serious," she said evenly, not even the slightest trace of amusement audible in her voice.

Maddie distorted her mouth and scratched the back of her head. Then suddenly her eyes widened and she seemed to be relieved - or happy. "Oh! Maybe it's in my suitcase!"

But Rosalie quenched that flicker of hope with a shake of her head.

"I packed your suitcase. It is definitely not in there," she added.

"Oh."

"Yes,_ oh_." After another moment of giving her an intent glare Rose suddenly sighed, then let her fingers run through Maddie's hair. "I'll get you a new one tomorrow, Maddie."

"But I'd like to keep my old one...," Maddie muttered. She didn't forget her phone on purpose, and hearing that Rosalie would just get a new one for her didn't feel right. She was still using the phone Rosalie hat gotten for her over three years ago because it was special to her. A new phone couldn't replace it, no way.

"It's old, you'd need a new one one way or the other soon."

"I don't _want_ a new one," Maddie retorted. "And it's still working."

Rosalie nodded - she knew why Maddie reacted like that. They had already noticed that she valued everything she owned and then had trouble letting go again. With their wealth they didn't have a problem with getting the newest cell phones on the market every few months, or getting a new car every few years. Most of their clothes they only wore once before giving them away to goodwill. All these things didn't matter much to them. But Maddie was different somehow - she wanted to keep the things she had and got very defensive when it seemed that someone wanted to take it from her.

"Okay... we'll just get one for two weeks, all right? You'll use it until Carlisle and Esme come and bring yours," she suggested and watched Maddie nod her head. So they had found a compromise, good. Otherwise Rose would be forced to make Maddie stay inside the house or follow her wherever she went - and that would probably ruin their holidays.

"How about you call Esme now? She told us to give her a call as soon as we arrive at the house," Rosalie told her and held her phone out for Maddie to use.

Maddie's facial features relaxed again, and she took the phone from her sister and speed dialed their home number.

Before it would ring on the other end Maddie said, "Rose? Maybe my phone is in the _car_! Or in my hoodie pocket!" She had changed into a clean hoodie after their hunt, so it wasn't too far fetched that her phone might be lying in the big front pocket of that piece of clothing.

"I'll go look for it," Rosalie said while getting up from the beanbag chair, then left the room and headed for the car outside.

She met Emmett on the front porch and told him of their little problem, and he offered to help her looking while Maddie was on the phone.

Maddie held the phone to her ear and after only three rings someone answered.

"_Hello?_"

"Hi Jasper, it's Maddie."

"_Oh, hello! Did you arrive already?_"

"Yes!" she chirped into the phone.

"_Did Emmett drive with his foot down to the floor or did you just skip the hunt?_"

Maddie laughed. "It was a quick hunt, didn't take long. But it _might_ be possible that Emmett decided the speed limit was more of a suggestion than an actual regulation."

"_Yes, I thought so._" And Maddie could hear him smirk on the other end of the line.

"Is Mom around?"

"_Sure, she's in the living room. Hang on._"

Maddie waited for a moment, listening to Jasper's footsteps heading down the stairs, then coming to a halt when he had reached the living room. Maddie could hear the phone being passed and Jasper muttering "It's Maddie.".

"_Angel, you're already at the house?_" Esme asked in a voice that indicated that she was smiling.

"Yes, Mom. We arrived a few minutes ago."

"_How was the drive and the hunt? ... you did hunt, didn't you?_"

"Yes, everything's fine," Maddie said. "Mom?"

"_Yes, dear?_"

"I LOVE my room! It's perfect! And the house and the lake are so beautiful!"

Esme laughed. "_I am glad you like it._"

"I_ love _it, Mom, seriously. Thank you so much."

"_You're welcome, baby. We wanted to - oh! wait a moment._"

Maddie could hear her Mom shift in her seat and a familiar beeping sound rang out and increased in volume. The moment Maddie realised what it was, Esme cleared her throat.

"_Madeline,_" she said. "_Whose phone are you using right now?_"

_Dammit._ "Rosalie's."

"_And where is Rosalie?_"

"She's outside with Emmett."

"_And why is Emmett calling you on your phone? Or better yet: Why was your phone between the couch cushions and not in your pocket?_"

"That's a very good question," Maddie admitted. "I have no idea."

That obviously made Esme groan. "_This is not funny, Maddie._"

"Come on, Mom! I didn't mean to forget it! Besides, Rose already said she'd get me a new one. You can bring mine when you come over, okay? Okay, Mom?"

"_Yes, I will. But you make sure that from now on you have a phone on you, you hear? You will not go outside and be on your own without a phone in your pocket. A phone with a full battery._"

"Yes," Maddie replied and was glad that her mother couldn't see her roll her eyes at the little lecture.

"_I mean it._"

"Uh-huh."

"_Make sure you don't forget or lose it again._"

"Uh-huh."

Esme noticed that Maddie wasn't really listening anymore, so she sighed in defeat and shook her head. "_You'd forget your head if it wasn't screwed on..._"

"Can I call you tomorrow, Mom? I wanna go swimming so bad ...," Maddie suddenly asked while craning her neck to look out of her window.

"_Go have fun, sweetheart. You can call me whenever you want._"

"Thanks Mom! Bye!"

"_Bye, baby._"

Maddie hung up, then left her room and walked into the living room.

"Did you call Mom?" Emmett asked while placing two suitcases next to the couch.

"Yes, and apparently _you_ called _me_! Em, why did you do that? Now Mom knows because of you!" Maddie asked and looked up at him.

"Tiny, we couldn't find your phone, so I decided to call it to see if it was indeed in the car! How was I supposed to know that you left it at home in ... well, where was it?"

"Couch. Must have fallen between the couch cushions or something," she explained and shrugged.

"So she would have found out one way or the other. Don't blame me for that."

Maddie cringed a little. "Sorry, didn't mean to blame you for it ..."

"Ah, it's okay," Emmett said with a wave of his hand, then grinned at his little sister. "Wanna go swimming?"

"Yes!"

He laughed, then lunged at her. They fell onto the couch, and Emmett quickly put her over his shoulder, then ran out the front door and in the direction of the lake. He didn't stop until he reached the jetty, then he unceremoniously dumped his sister into the water. The loud splashing sound cut through the peaceful silence of the night and the squeal that escaped Maddie's lips was abruptly cut off when her head went under the water.

Just a few seconds later and she resurfaced, wiping her wet hair out of her face. She grinned from ear to ear, because the water was great and she had been waiting for this moment for more than a week.

"Emmett!" Rosalie called from the front porch, having witnessed what her husband had just done and not liking it very much.

"Uh-oh," he muttered and make a face.

Maddie laughed some more when Rosalie approached them, because she didn't look too happy and Emmett looked like he wanted to run away.

But Rosalie was already too close for him to make a run for it, so he just jumped into the water before she could catch him. She took a few steps back as water splashed onto the jetty the moment Emmett dove into the lake.

He swam until he was about sixty feet away from the jetty, then grinned at his wife. He knew she wouldn't just jump in when she was still wearing her expensive designer clothes. And that was also the reason why she came out here to tell him off - she didn't want them to go into the water while still wearing their regular clothes.

"Emmett," she chided. "Why couldn't you two change into your bathing clothes first?"

"No time, babe," he replied with a grin and Maddie snorted with laughter. When Rose directed a stern glare at her, she just dove under and swam over to her brother.

"Fine. Go for a swim while I unpack. And keep it quiet, okay? It's late."

"Okay!" they yelled in unison and watched Rose sigh and shake her head.

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**It's short, but I'll have a new chapter up soon (well, at least I hope so ...)!**

**REVIEW, please!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys!**

**Thank you for your reviews!  
**

**And here comes another quick filler chapter for you!**

* * *

Maddie sat on the jetty, glad that the sun was finally down so she could go outside. The house was great and it was fun spending time with Rose and Emmett only, but she actually didn't want to be trapped inside all day - that wouldn't exactly be the holidays she was hoping for.

Her bare feet were dangling in the water, making gentle splashing sounds whenever she moved them a little. The noises were quite relaxing, just like at home where they were surrounded by the constant rushing sounds of the river running past their house.

Unfortunately it was completely wind still on this day, so it was already too late when she caught her brother's scent and heard footsteps behind her. She turned to look at him, but right at that moment she felt his hands on her back and was pushed into the water.

A little yelp escaped her lips, and when she resurfaced and put her hands on the jetty, Emmett was crouching down to look her in the eye, a big grin etched onto his face.

"How's the water, Tiny?" he asked and started laughing when the look in her eyes darkened.

"Wet."

"Oh come on, you wanted to go swimming, right? You've been waiting for it all day."

"Yes, but not like that. Help me get out," she said and stretched her hand out towards him so he could pull her out of the water.

He nodded and stood up again, then grabbed her hand. Before he could pull her up onto the wooden jetty however, she tugged at his hand, making him fall into the water right behind her.

Laughing filled the air, and the moment Emmett came up, he joined in.

"Sneaky," he commented.

"You started it," she replied and splashed water in his face.

He made a dash at her and she dove under, only to swim further away from him.

They played like that for a good hour, until Rosalie's voice sounded over to them. She reminded them to keep it quiet as it was already late. There were several houses on the other side of the lake - not close enough to make them feel uncomfortable - but close enough so that the people living there were within earshot for them. Rose just didn't want to draw unnecessary attention, because she feared the people might hear them. Only a couple more days of staying inside during the day, then the weather would change and they could spend the rest of their holidays going outside whenever they wished so.

"Come on, let's see what Rose is doing," Emmett said after a while and climbed onto the jetty, splashing water everywhere.

She nodded and swam over to him, then let him pull her out of the lake. He started walking towards the house, but Maddie remained standing next to the jetty, patting down her pockets.

Emmett stopped when he noticed that his sister wasn't following him. "What are you looking for?" Emmett asked.

"Ehm … do you know the new phone Rose got for me this morning? … it was in my pocket."

Now Emmett's eyes went wide. "You mean it's not working anymore?"

"Probably … but we can only be sure after we've found it," she replied uneasily, turned the pockets of her jeans inside out and looked up at him.

"Dammit," he muttered under his breath, then walked back to where Maddie stood.

"So it has to be somewhere … in there, right?" he asked and motioned towards the lake in which they had just swam around. Unfortunately they had covered quite a bit of the huge lake while playing around, chasing each other - her phone could be anywhere.

And just like that, Emmett jumped back into the lake, diving under to check the ground for his sister's brand new cell phone. He was to blame for this he realised, and that's why he would make damn sure to find the little thing. Rose would probably have a fit, but only if they wouldn't be able to find the phone and fix it again.

He was under water for more than five minutes before he resurfaced again.

"So?" Maddie asked, still standing on the jetty, her wet clothes dripping onto the wooden planks.

"How about you help me, hm? We'll find it much quicker that way."

"Oh, okay," she replied, but then hesitated, a thoughtful look on her face.

"What is it?" he called over to her and started to swim in her direction.

"How about we call my phone with yours?"

"I'm not sure if it's still working lying _on the bottom of the lake_, Tiny. But yeah, go for it," he said and motioned towards the front porch. He had placed his cell phone onto the bench before sneakily creeping up on his little sister to push her into the water.

She nodded, then ran up to the porch and snatched his phone off the bench. She immediately dialed her number while walking back towards the lake, holding the phone to her ear.

"Emmy?" she suddenly whined. "I think it's not working."

"Okay. Put the phone away and then help me look for it."

She nodded, ran back up onto the porch to get rid of his phone, then turned and ran to the jetty, jumping into the water as soon as she was close enough.

Luckily, after another twenty minutes they found it. Well, Emmett found it, but whatever.

He placed it on a dry wooden plank of the jetty, then climbed up on it.

The phone was effectively ruined. There was water behind the display, making it look like a little pocket fish tank, and there sure as heck was a lot more water inside of that little thing.

"Is it still working?" Maddie asked and swam over to him, then pulled herself up on the jetty to sit next to him.

"No."

" ... it's not waterproof?" she asked, even though she already knew the answer to that question.

He snorted and held it up. Lake water gushed out of the side of the phone, splashing down on his already wet jeans. "No."

"Can you fix it?"

"I'm not sure. We can try opening it and then let the separate parts dry, but I'm not sure if it will work."

Maddie made a face at hearing that.

"Maybe we should just get a new one." Emmett sighed and ran his fingers through his dark locks.

"Great … Rose will kill me," Maddie muttered and pushed her bottom lip out.

"No, she won't," Emmett immediately said to soothe her nerves while rubbing her back in a comforting manner. "She'll understand."

Maddie just raised a single eyebrow at hearing that. She wasn't convinced that Rosalie would understand. It was more likely that she would yell at her and then ground her.

"Come on. Lighten up, would you? She'll only be mad at me because I pushed you into the water. You had it in your pocket just like she told you to, so you didn't do anything wrong."

She heaved a sigh before nodding her head, then followed after her brother up to the house and inside.

Of course Rosalie had a fit, because they had gone swimming with their regular clothes on again. And when she saw Maddie's phone in her husband's hand, she flipped.

She looked mad enough to smack Maddie for the ruined phone, so Emmett send Maddie to her room to have a shower and get changed while he would also get into clean clothes first. Right now the little thing was completely damaged and it couldn't get any worse, so no need to hurry.

After Maddie took a shower and was dressed in dry clothes again, she peeked into the living room and saw Emmett and Rose trying to dry off the little individual parts of the phone in hopes they might get it working again.

"Come," Rosalie said when she saw Maddie watching them from the hallway.

She didn't sound awfully angry anymore, and she looked more exhausted or disappointed than mad, so Maddie approached the couch and sat down next to her sister.

"Are you still mad at me?" she asked timidly and glanced at her sister.

Rosalie sighed and brushed a strand of wet hair out of Maddie's face. "No, little one, I'm not mad at you. It's _Emmett_ I'm mad at."

That was just like Emmett had predicted, but Maddie didn't want him to be in trouble either. "I think it was an accident, and accidents happen."

"Word!" Emmett exclaimed.

"You better get that phone working again," Rosalie said to him with narrowed eyes.

"Funny, huh?" Maddie said musingly. "You said my phone is too old and I needed a new one. And now you got me a brand-new phone and it isn't even working anymore after just a few hours."

Rose pushed her tongue against the inside of her cheek in irritation before responding to what Maddie just said. "That's very funny, yes."

The way Rosalie said it made Maddie giggle - she was obviously still pissed.

"You have no reason to laugh about this, Maddie. As long as you don't have a phone, you're not going anywhere."

"So? I'm either in here or swimming in the lake with Em," she replied and curled up on the couch.

"Esme told me this morning that you aren't allowed to even take a step outside as long as you don't have a phone with a full battery on you."

"But the battery _is_ full!" Maddie argued.

Rose silenced her with a stern look, because she knew that Maddie knew that a phone that wasn't working - even though the battery was full - wouldn't really count for Esme.

Then Rose let out a fake sigh. "Too bad, Maddie ... I found a couple of brand-new mountain bikes in the garage." She knew that Maddie and Emmett would enjoy riding these bikes through the deep forests and along the lakeshore. But that was obviously not going to happen anytime soon.

Maddie's jaw dropped and her eyes went as big as saucers. "Mom and Dad got us mountain bikes?"

"Yes, they did." Rosalie smirked.

"Emmett, chop-chop! Get the stupid thing fixed!" Maddie urged and clapped her hands to make him get a move on.

* * *

**Yep, another short chapter to bridge the gap until I have the next chapters on this laptop. (I'll tackle that problem this weekend, promise!)**

**REVIEW!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello!**

**Uhm ... okay guys, let's call me dense. This chapter here (which was actually _supposed_ to be the second chapter) was already in my doc manager! Duh!**

** Sorry about that! But how was I supposed to know that I already uploaded it when it's named sfvnergfbinc? Huh, anyone?  
**

**Anyways, this chapter here heads into a different direction that the last ones (I never meant to make her lose her phone, haha! That was just to give you something quick to read!), but otherwise the description of the story wouldn't make any sense *g***

**Please read!  
**

* * *

It was a sunny day, so Maddie couldn't go for a swim in the lake, _again_.

She really wanted to, but she wasn't stupid. She'd just wait until nighttime and then jump into the water. It had been like that for the last few days, ever since they had arrived here. But they were already prepared for that since Alice had told them to either stay inside the house or just stay in Forks for a few more days until the weather here at the lake would be compatible with their 'special skin type'.

Soon ... very soon they would be able to spend their time outside during the day.

In order to get some fresh air and more peace and quiet - Emmett was playing a console game again and he had turned the speakers up - Maddie decided to go sit on the front porch to read one of her new books. The shelf in her room was stocked, because her parents had obviously thought about everything she might need to spend her holidays with something to do. Reading was fun for Maddie, even though reading a book just once was already enough to remember every single line for a looong time. Weirdly, she always got away with the excuse of having forgotten something - like her cell phone. Vampires couldn't unintentionally forget. Lose things, yes, but not forget. Oh well, who cared? After her cell phone drowned the day before, she had already gotten a new one to carry around in her pocket. She wasn't sure if Rose and Emmett were so adamant that she had a phone on her because of their ground rule and Esme's possible wrath, or because they wanted to grant her the freedom of going outside and be on her own if she wished so.

"Maddie?" Rosalie asked when she saw her sister heading for the front door. The sun was shining brightly, reflecting off the surface of the lake and there wasn't a single cloud to be seen in the blue sky - she did not deem this weather fitting for a sparkle-in-the-sun-vampire.

"Oh!" Maddie exclaimed as she noticed Rose leaning against the counter in the kitchen. With a little smile she said, "I won't go out into the sun, just sit on the porch and read. Is that okay?"

The porch was roofed over and therefore it was shady. No sun. She figured it was okay, but what would Rose say?

Rosalie took a breath and smiled back, nodding her head. "Sure. Tell me if you need anything."

"Yup, thanks," Maddie chirped and walked outside, closing the front door with a soft click.

Rosalie breathed a sigh of relief. She liked how relaxed her little sister seemed to be here at the lake, much more relaxed than in Forks with the rest of the family around. It definitely wasn't beneficial for Maddie to always have her gifted siblings around. It constricted her freedom, even though now she was allowed to leave the house to be by herself. Ever since a few months ago Carlisle and Esme decided it was the right time to let Maddie decide on her own what she wanted to do during the day. Go outside, spend time away from home, meet friends. She was free to do so as long as she had her phone on her and told them where she was going and when they should come pick her up.

But these holidays now were obviously something Maddie really enjoyed. She could go swimming and goof around with Emmett all day without having any interfering obligations like school or the like. The change of scenery was doing her good and it made Rose happy to see her that way.

* * *

Maddie was sitting on the porch with her feet propped up against the banister, her book lying in her lap. She had been reading for close to an hour when she could suddenly see someone approaching, even though the person was still far away.

It was a guy - maybe around sixteen - dressed in a T-shirt and shorts, and he had been glancing at her for the last half an hour. She had noticed, of course; reading did not distract her enough to not see and hear what was happening around her.

First he was talking to some other boys, then got slapped on the shoulder by one of them before starting to walk towards their house, laughing and waving over his shoulder at his friends one last time.

At first he took large steps while he was still within their sight, probably to show the others how determined and confident he was. But then he slowed down only to fix his hair before he started walking again, this time strolling in the direction of their house.

Before he could reach the porch, Maddie looked up at him in fake surprise, as though she had so not expected someone to walk up to her. Sometimes it was fun acting human.

"Hey," he called and nodded his head towards her.

"Hey," Maddie greeted back and gave him a little smile.

Yup, he was _kinda_ cute. Not exactly her type, but at least he was nice to look at. And he had obviously arrived way before she had, because his skin was tanned and his brown hair looked sun bleached.

"So it's true what they were saying." He stopped a few feet from the porch and smirked up at her.

She returned the smirk he was giving her and tilted her head to the side. "... well?"

"That there is a pretty girl staying in this house."

Maddie just laughed at his bluntness. "I'll let my sister know."

He looked baffled, his eyes narrowed in confusion for a second before he shook his head. "No, I-I meant you, not your sister!"

"So my sister isn't pretty?" She tzked. "That's so rude of you."

"No! I-"

"It's okay, I'm just messing with you," Maddie interrupted him, laughing.

"Oh … I'm Chris."

"Maddie."

After she had told him her name, he seemed to relax again. Squinting up at her, he asked, "Why are you sitting here in the shade?"

She mimicked the way he looked at her. "Why are you standing there in the sun?"

Her counter question obviously confused him again, because he just blinked owlishly at her. Then he shook his head lightly and cleared his throat, pointing with his thumb to the other side of the lake behind himself. "Would you like to join us? We are over there swimming and just hanging out."

"Uh ... no thanks," Maddie said, then continued reading her book like he wasn't there.

He hadn't expected that, because he just stared at her instead of leaving again or saying a word.

"And ... would you tell me why?" he asked after an awkward moment of silence.

"Too warm in the sun." Maddie shrugged her shoulders, never taking her eyes off the page she was reading.

"Then go for a swim with me. There is a _lake,_" he let her know and pointed with his finger to the left.

_Geez, really?_

She glanced at him. "Nah, I'm good. But thanks for asking."

Her dismissive manner seemed to make him curious and he took a few steps closer to the stairs of the front porch.

"Mind if I sit with you?" he asked, then suddenly smirked and winked at her. "Too warm in the sun, you know?"

Oh, Maddie _might_ like him.

"Come," she said after a moment of thinking about it and patted the spot on the bench next to herself.

He casually walked up the few steps and slumped down right next to her.

Taking a deep breath, he suddenly stilled and looked at her with wide open eyes. Her scent had caught him off guard. It was sweet and fit perfectly, like it had been explicitly made for her and no one else. Such an interesting and intoxicating perfume ...

And now that he was so close to her, he could see her a lot clearer and immediately noticed that she had the weirdest, yet prettiest eyes he had ever seen. Kind of _very_ light brown or something, like honey or caramel.

While looking into her eyes, he also noticed the dark hair that framed her face, and he unconsciously lifted his hand to touch it, to feel if it was as soft and silky as it looked like.

She drew back a little and raised her eyebrows, waiting for him to say something or at least stop staring at her. And she didn't want to be touched.

"Oh, uhm ...," he uttered and quickly withdrew his hand, then cleared his throat.

"Yes?"

"Uhm ... so, when did you arrive with your parents?" he asked and leaned back on the bench, crossing his arms over his chest to keep himself from trying to touch her again.

His question made her laugh, and the bell like sound made his heart flutter.

"Two days ago. I'm here with my siblings, not with my parents."

"Cool. So you're here for parties and -"

"That would be awesome, but no. My parents will come here, too, only at a later time. What about your family?" she asked.

He just stared at her. Her face was flawless and she had the most beautiful lips he had ever seen. The way they moved when she spoke and smiled was something he could watch all day.

When she looked at him weirdly he noticed that he had been staring at her like a moron and not even listened to what she just said. Well, he had heard her speaking because the sound of her voice was mesmerising, but he had no clue what she had told him.

"... so?" she asked and lifted a questioning eyebrow.

"I'm sixteen," he blurted, saying the first thing that came to his mind and instantly making her laugh by that.

He would willingly embarrass himself in front of her all the time if it would make her laugh like that, he thought.

"Oookay, then let's change topics," she said and shrugged her shoulders once. "I'm fifteen." Yes, at school she was still supposed to be fourteen, but whatever. They were hours away, so nobody would ever know what she told this guy.

* * *

"Whom is Maddie talking to?" Emmett demanded when he stormed into the living room. He had been playing with his Xbox for quite a while now, until he got a little bored and decided to go look for his wife. But the moment he switched his console off, he could hear his little sister's voice – and then the one of a strange guy – coming from outside.

"Oh, some boy came along."

His jaw dropped. _Some boy came along?_

"Why didn't you call her inside?" he asked frantically.

Rose peeled her eyes away from her magazine, then looked up at her husband, frowning. "Why would I? They are just talking. You can hear them, loud and clear."

"Unbelievable," he murmured and hurried over to the windows, pushing the curtains to the side a little bit to peek out.

"And what is she _wearing_? Rose, we are supposed to take care of her!" he exclaimed and wheeled around to face her again.

Her husband was starting to act a little weird, Rosalie noticed. And Maddie was wearing a simple tank top and Capri trousers, so she really didn't understand his discomposure. "These are clothes I have packed for her."

"_You?_"

She rolled her eyes. "It's summer. Should I have brought her winter coat?"

"Just look at how this vile guy is eyeing her! Ugh!" he all but growled, then left the foyer and headed for Maddie's room.

Rose frowned at seeing him walk into that direction, because she had no clue what he was planning to do.

A second later and he was back in the living room, holding one of Maddie's hoodie jackets in his hand.

"Oh Emmett, stop th-"

But she didn't get to finish, because her husband had already moved past her and wrenched the front door open to march outside with heavy steps.

Maddie and that boy both looked up when he suddenly appeared on the porch, his eyes slightly narrowed and his jaw rigid.

"Hey, Em," Maddie greeted him casually and gave him a little smile. "Chris, this is my brother Em. Em, this is Chris."

"Hey, bro, whazzup," Emmett said but didn't bother looking at him. His voice didn't seem awfully polite, but when he spoke to Maddie, it was soft and loving again. And urgent.

"Mad? It's getting a bit chilly, don't you think? Here, put it on," He threw the jacket in her direction and she bent forward and caught it before the metal slider of the zipper could hit Chris in the face, then frowned at Emmett.

"I'm fine," she told him and made to place the jacket over the banister of the porch, but stopped when her brother spoke again.

"Put it on. You had such a bad cold last week. We don't want you to get sick again, now do we?"

Maddie blinked her eyes in disbelief. _Was he serious?_

"Uh! I think Rose just called for you," she told him while pointing at the door. Something was wrong with Emmett, and Rose was probably the right person to help him with whatever problem he was having.

But Emmett decided to just ignore what Maddie was hinting at and settled for glaring at the boy instead.

"Emmett? Would you step in here for a moment?" Rose called. At least she had gotten Maddie's hint.

He glared at the boy a moment longer, clenching his hands once, then said in an icy voice, "Coming." He took a few steps backwards, then entered the house again but leaving the door open.

That was _his_ hint for Maddie that he would be nearby and actually expected her to follow him.

"Uhm … that was your brother?" Chris asked hesitantly.

"Uh-huh. Don't mind him," she told him and placed her feet back onto the banister.

"Yeah, okay...," he said and got up from the bench, suddenly feeling a little uncomfortable sitting on the shady porch with Maddie. "I have to leave anyways, the others are waiting. Are you sure you don't wanna come with?"

"Maddie."

Maddie heard Emmett say her name and decided to go ignore him for now. Since Emmett had been a wee bit weird while outside, she wasn't too eager to follow his request right now.

"No, I'll stay here," she told Chris and shook her head lightly.

"How about tonight?"

"Maddie?" Emmett suddenly called, which made Maddie roll her eyes.

_Grrr._

"Maybe another time," she answered while standing up.

"Okay, sure, no problem. I don't live too far from here, so you can come by whenever you want. If you want, of course."

"_Maddie? !_" Emmett called again, this time a lot fiercer, and Maddie clenched her jaw in annoyance.

"We'll see. Bye!" she said, grabbed her book and the jacket, then walked into the house.

"Bye!" he returned and gave her a little wave. He lingered on the porch a moment longer, before descending the stairs and walking away.

* * *

"What the fuck was that all about?" Maddie queried the moment she had shut the door behind herself.

"Language," Rose admonished but was probably not heard, because Emmett answered while taking a step towards Maddie.

"_Are you kidding me?_ What were you doing outside?"

"I didn't go out into the sun, where's the problem?" Maddie asked and looked between her two siblings.

"There is no problem," Rosalie answered soothingly and placed a hand on Emmett's forearm in order to calm him.

"Yes, there is!" Emmett argued while looking at Rosalie, before focussing back on his little sister. "What was he doing here?"

"We were just talking," Maddie said and placed her things onto the little side table next to the front door.

"Just talking," Emmett repeated with a sarcastic undertone in his voice. He made it sound like she was lying and that kinda ticked her off.

So Maddie was in a pissy mood now.

How could he be so … so _uncool_? "Oh no, hang on. First I sucked him off,_ then_ we were _just talking_." she spat.

Yes, she wanted to spite him. And she had obviously done a great job with that, because Emmett looked like his head was about to explode.

No need to say that Rosalie had enough and therefore chose to interfere.

She quickly sent Emmett upstairs to cool down, because he started to open and close his mouth but no sound came out - never a good sign.

Then she focussed her attention back on Maddie. "I don't want to hear you say that ever again, you hear? I mean it," she told her strictly.

"Rose!" Maddie complained.

"No! I can understand that you're mad at him, but that doesn't mean you can say whatever you want."

"But … he was being ridiculous!" Maddie countered.

"Yes, I know. Come, let's sit down and talk about this," Rosalie suggested and they walked over to the couch in the middle of the living room and sat down.

"He didn't mean to insult you," Rose said as she watched Maddie lean back on the couch and crossing her arms over her chest. She scowled and was sporting an angry pout on her lip, but Rosalie knew she would listen.

"He's mad at me, and I didn't even do anything," Maddie grumbled when Rosalie didn't say anything else.

"No, no. Emmett is not mad at you," Rosalie told her and inched closer to her, putting an arm around her shoulders.

"Well, he sure as hell looked mad."

"Maddie, he was only irritated to see that boy."

Maddie groaned. "Yeah, well, that much was obvious. But you heard us. We were just sitting there, talking."

"You don't need to explain yourself to me. It's all right. Emmett will calm down and then everything is fine again," she told her and let her hand run up and down Maddie's arm.

"Come on, don't be upset," Rose said when she noticed that Maddie was still looking unhappy. Of course she would be unhappy, Emmett hadn't been exactly fair to her. Besides, these holidays were supposed to be fun for each and every one of them, so he should grant her the freedom of choosing for herself how she wanted to spend her time here at the lake.

Rosalie sighed, then hugged her sister to herself.

* * *

**Yes, summer ... sun ... and some hormone-driven teenagers! Thought it might be fun to read and write ;-)  
**

**Thank you for reviewing! And now you can REVIEW again and let me know what you think of this chapter!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey there!**

**Sorry for the wait, but here you go! Next chapter!**

* * *

"Have you calmed down?" Rosalie asked when she entered her and Emmett's bedroom. She had spent quite some time talking with Maddie, until the girl decided to go to her room to play or read. Now Rose wanted to see how Emmett was doing and talk to him as well. She spotted him standing in front of the window with his arms crossed, standing stock-still like a statue. He didn't turn around to look at her, just continued watching something with narrowed eyes.

She stepped closer to him until she was at his side, then placed a hand on his upper arm while looking out as well.

_Oh ..._

Her dear husband was glaring at the houses on the other side of the lake. It was already dark outside, but light was shining through the windows, letting them see which houses were currently inhabited.

"Still not done being a jerk?" she asked and waited for him to turn his glare on her.

"I'm not being a jerk. I'm being reasonable and responsible," he told her, his face distorted with displeasure about the way she had perceived the situation downstairs. He hadn't done anything wrong, in fact, he had done the complete right thing by showing his little sister that was she was doing was not okay.

"I beg to differ," she replied and walked over to the large bed, then sat down and crossed her legs. It seemed like she wanted to discuss this, her raised eyebrow told him that much.

But all he could do right then was looking at her weirdly.

"We are supposed to watch her," he reminded his wife. It was a simple fact, they had always watched her, but Rose must have decided that neglecting one's duty was all right during the holidays.

Rosalie sighed. "Watch her, yes, but not make her miserable."

"I didn't make her miserable!" Emmett countered. How could she claim he did? He just saved Maddie from being miserable! That boy had been vile and annoying!

"So she seemed happy to you just now?" Rosalie asked and snorted. _That was so absurd._ "That's really interesting."

"She wasn't exactly ecstatic, fine," he admitted. "But it's for the best and you know it." Then he started pacing the room, all the while scowling like a stubborn boy.

"Emmett, this boy came by to chat with Maddie, that's all."

"He can chat with someone else," Emmett snapped.

Rosalie was unable to suppress a long, drawn out groan of annoyance. "Would you please just sit down? I think you should maybe see this from her point of view, because she certainly doesn't think you have been reasonable."

He shot one last glare out of the window and at one of the houses before marching over to the bed and sitting down next to his wife.

"Did you talk to her?"

Rosalie nodded. "Yes, I did. She was quite upset with you, because she got the feeling you don't trust her and just wanted to be mean."

"I'm not mean, I'm her favourite brother! The coolest brother _ever_! I would never be mean to her!" he argued instantly, but uncertainty tainted his voice. Rosalie's words made him realise that how he had meant his intervening and how Maddie might have perceived it could indeed differ.

The change in his voice – from angry to uncertain – did not pass Rosalie. "And what do you have to say about her saying you don't seem to trust her?"

He let his fingers run through his dark locks, then sighed. "Rose, you know I trust her … but I don't trust perverted little teenage boys."

That made her laugh. "I'm sure Maddie isn't looking for romance, she just wants to meet a few people to hang out with. That boy is harmless, Emmett. "

"Oh, come on, Rose. Did you even _see_ him? Did you see how he was _looking_ at her?!" Emmett asked, looking at her incredulously. He had every reason to be concerned, Rose shouldn't pretend like he was overreacting. Normally she was even worse than he was when it came to their family's safety!

Placing a hand on her husband's forearm and giving it a comforting rub, she said softly, "No, but I _heard_ them, Emmett. It was a harmless talk, nothing happened."

Okay, he could see how that may count as supervision for his wife … they had been sitting on the porch and she had heard every word the kids had exchanged. That was maybe _kind of_ okay. "Still, he had no business coming here!" he exclaimed after a moment. The boy daring to walk up to their house was the actual problem here! If he hadn't done that, Maddie wouldn't have talked to him and they would have to discuss this now!

But Rosalie's patience with her husband's tenacity wavered. "And you have no business getting involved in whom she befriends! We should be glad that she meets people right in front of our noses so we can get involved in case something is getting out of hand!"

And again, Emmett had to admit that Rose had a point. _Still …_ "She doesn't need friends, she has us."

Rosalie groaned and squinched her eyes shut at hearing that. "Emmett, don't be like that."

"Be like what?"

She opened her eyes again and narrowed them slightly while looking at Emmett. "You know what I mean. Don't try and forbid her from talking to people. The only thing you would achieve by that is making our holidays stressful and making Maddie go behind our backs to do what she wants because she would think we are being unfair. Besides, we are only staying here for one month, after that they won't see each other ever again!"

Unfortunately, there was nothing more he could say, because Rosalie was kinda right ... he didn't want Maddie to sneak out or lie to them because she feels that they aren't being fair with her. Also, they maybe should be glad that she would talk to people on their front porch and not somewhere else. They could supervise her that way, keep her safe. And indeed, it was only for one month.

He averted his eyes to evade his wife's steady gaze. "Maybe ... maybe I have overreacted a little."

Rosalie snorted. "_Maybe_."

Hesitantly he looked back into her golden eyes. "She isn't mad at me, is she? She'll understand,"

"I'm not sure … but don't worry. You know she cannot stay mad at you for long. Go find her and apologise."

* * *

"Maddie?" Emmett called while he knocked against the door frame of Maddie's room. The door was ajar, so he figured she wasn't mad at him anymore. Otherwise she definitely would have shut her door to let him know that she didn't want to be disturbed.

She didn't answer, so Emmett just shrugged his shoulders, pushed against the door and entered.

He found his sister lying on her stomach, feet crossed in the air, and she was playing with her Gameboy. He watched her curiously for a moment, glad to see her so relaxed again, when she suddenly spoke.

"What?" she asked without looking up at him.

He threw himself down on the bed and hugged her, whining, "I'm sorry!"

"Uff, Em! Let me go!" Maddie complained when he rolled around with her.

With a big grin on his face he let her go, then sat up.

She scowled. "Are you aware that I just lost because of you?" she queried with a hint of annoyance in her voice and held her Gameboy up for him to see.

He gave her a sheepish smile, then nudged her in the side. "Tiny, come on. It's dark, let's go swimming."

"No," she said because she liked to tease him. Of course she wanted to go swimming! She had waited all day until the sun would go down and she could jump into the lake again.

But somehow she had the feeling that Emmett should maybe give her a proper apology for the way he had acted that afternoon. He had been so unfair to her, and it was completely unlike him. She didn't want him to be like that for the rest of their holidays, that would suck.

Her answer let him know that she hadn't forgotten about his reaction earlier. He felt bad and it was clearly visible in the look he gave his little sister. "I'm really sorry about ... earlier. I might have overreacted a tiny little bit."

She pushed her tongue against the inside of her cheek while glaring at him. _That was supposed to be an apology?_

"_A tiny little bit?_ Em, you tried to embarrass me and then you practically yelled at me. You have never ever yelled at me before." Her voice turned from slightly angry to sad, and Emmett felt a pang of guilt when he noticed that.

He scratched the back of his neck, feeling embarrassed and uncomfortable. "I didn't mean to."

"I thought our holidays would be fun ...," Maddie mumbled without looking up at her brother.

"They are fun! Just you, Rose and me," he said and tilted his head so he could look her in the eye. "We always have fun together."

Maddie didn't reply, just fumbled with the Gameboy in her hands.

"Come on, Tiny," he said and lightly bumped her shoulder with his, "I promise I won't yell at you again. Let's go for a swim now."

And Maddie just blew a raspberry at him, pretending to be still mad.

A smirk appeared on his face – he knew she wasn't mad anymore. They had kind of talked about it now and it had been enough to settle the matter. So he quickly picked her up from the bed, startling her so much that her Gameboy slipped from her hands and fell onto the soft blanket on the bed. Then he craddled her in his arms and ran from the room.

"Stop!" she called, but Emmett did not slow down.

He sped out of the front door, down the porch steps and across the frontyard until he reached the bathing jetty.

She squealed right before Emmett jumped up and they landed in the warm water with a loud splash.

Maddie giggled when she resurfaced, wiping a wet strand of hair out of her face.

When Emmett resurfaced as well, she splashed water into his face.

"I told you I don't wanna go swimming with you!"

"Oops." He smirked and pushed her head under water.

They played around for a while, enjoying the wonderful water and the quiet, when Rose suddenly appeared on the jetty.

"Why do you always go swimming in your clothes? Please help me understand. We packed everything you would need for swimming and yet you ignore it," she said, but she didn't seem mad. She just found it a little annoying that they always got the whole house wet when they patted to their rooms to change into some dry clothes.

"It would waste time. We are spontaneous." Emmett grinned and swam towards her.

"Yup, we're spontaneous," Maddie repeated and nodded her head.

Rose let out a little groan. Sometimes she got the feeling that she was watching two children instead of just one.

"Jump in, Rosie, the water is amazing," Emmett said while holding himself up by grabbing the side of the jetty.

"No, thank you. I don't go swimming in my clothes," she replied and looked like she wanted to head back inside.

Emmett looked behind himself, winking at Maddie who nodded her head with a sparkle in her eyes.

Glancing mischievously back up at his wife, he all of a sudden seized her around the ankle and pulled her into the water before she could even protest.

* * *

**The next chapter will be up tomorrow!**

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	6. Chapter 6

**Hi!  
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**Thanks for reviewing! And here is the next chapter for you:****  
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* * *

The next day was just as warm and sunny as the last one. It was too boring to be inside all day waiting for the sun to go down, so Maddie decided to go sit on the porch again.

She obviously wasn't the only one who preferred to sit outside, because Emmett joined her soon after. That was cool … for about five seconds.

Emmett just sat there with absolutely nothing to do. He was twiddling his thumbs, sighing and clicking his tongue and when he got too bored, he decided to annoy the crap out of his little sister while she was trying to read.

"Emmy, _please_!" she whined after he had poked her in the side for the sixth time out of sheer boredom.

"Please what?" he asked and raised his eyebrows.

"Stop it!"

"Hm," he uttered while looking at the roof of the porch like he was really thinking about it. "No," he then said and poked her again with his index finger.

She slapped at his hand, but he just laughed and continued.

"Okay, _okay_!" she called angrily and jumped up, taking a few steps away from him. He stopped his attack and grinned triumphantly, while she straightened the hem of her shirt and glowered at him. "What do I have to do so that you'll leave me alone?"

"Play Xbox with me," he said with a shrug and snatched the book from her hands.

That made her roll her eyes. "I'm busy. Ask Rose, she'll play with you."

"No, she won't. She's reading right now."

"But I'm also reading!" she complained and tried to get her book back, but he held it out of her reach.

"No, you're not," he snorted. He was holding her book so she wasn't reading anymore, right? She could be so silly sometimes ...

Maddie sighed, but then smirked at him. He could be so annoying sometimes ...

So she agreed to play with him for a while if he would let her read afterwards. And in order to have a little more fun than he would have, she chose the game ...

* * *

A few hours later when it was already turning dark, Maddie was back on the porch again. Emmett was still inside playing with his gaming console – he wanted to practice because Maddie had beat him at a game they had purchased before leaving Forks. It didn't happen too often that she was better at a game than he was, but everytime it did happen, he just couldn't accept it. She didn't know if it was his weird gamer pride or just the fact that he was extremely competitive, but right now she didn't really care. Why? Because playing that game again and again would distract him from his previous plan to watch her every move. Yes, she wasn't stupid ... she knew why he had followed her outside that afternoon and wouldn't leave her alone.

But at least now she would be granted some peace and quiet.

She sat curled up on the wooden bench for what felt like nothing more than a few minutes when she saw someone approaching. Well, it wasn't just anyone but the boy from the day before.

She hadn't been sure if he would dare to come back here because Emmett had been a little intimidating yesterday. But seeing him now made her laugh a little. The moment Emmett's distracted, the guy he dislikes shows up. Ha!

"Isn't it too dark to read?" Chris asked when he was close enough to make out what she was doing.

"I have amazing eye sight." She smirked. It was true, after all.

He stopped at the bottom of the stairs and watched her while putting one hand on the banister.

After a long moment of silence, Maddie shut her book and placed it onto her lap. "... yes?" she asked when he didn't say anything, just stared at her.

"Uhm … I was wondering … "

"Uh-huh?"

He glanced at the lake, then looked back up at Maddie who was still sitting on the porch. "Well, it isn't hot anymore and the sun is nearly down."

"I've noticed," she replied, nodding her head.

"So … "

She threw her book onto the sitting surface next to herself and said, "Ugh. Just say whatever you want to say or leave." If she wouldn't get to read her book today, then it should at least be for a damn good reason.

His eyes widened. It wasn't his plan to stammer like an idiot in front of her, it just happened! "Would you like to go swimming with me?"

She sighed. _Finally he was able to speak like a normal person, great!_ "No."

"Oh," he said and let go of the banister. "Oh … "

Maddie heard Emmett groan from inside. He was still playing the game and tried to improve. Hearing him made Maddie remember how stupid he had been to her the day before. And she remembered his stupid plan of not letting her out of his sight anymore ... so she made a decision.

"We could go for a walk," she suggested and got up from her seat, sliding her feet into her sneakers in a matter of seconds. Then she skipped down the few steps and came to a halt right in front of Chris, looking at him expectantly while she waited for an answer.

His heartbeat increased when she was standing so close to him and she internally groaned at hearing that.

"Yeah, sure! That's a great idea!"

"Yes." Maddie nodded her head in agreement and walked past him, leading the way.

* * *

"Finally!" Emmett exclaimed and clapped his hands once before raising both his arms in the air like he had just won a race. Well, he indeed had, if only on his Xbox. For over an hour he had been sitting in one of the vacant bedrooms upstairs, trying to beat Maddie's highscore and now it had finally worked. Now he was _finally_ ready to challenge her to a return game.

He pushed the controller off his lap and got up from the bed, immediately stretching out. Then he made his way across the hall over to his and Rose's bedroom.

"Done?" Rose asked lazily and looked over the top of her magazine at him. She was sitting on the recliner in their bedroom and had been reading one of her favourite books while Emmett had busied himself with that game. It seemed a little weird to her that her husband was still inside even though the sun was down. During the last few days he had stormed outside the moment it was dark enough for them to walk around without looking non-human.

"Yeah, piece of cake," he said with a wave of his hand and leaned against the door frame. "So … where's the little one? I need to tell her that I can beat her with my eyes closed now."

Rose sighed and shook her head at his childish competitiveness, but then pointed at the window to indicate that Maddie went outside. "She wanted to read in silence."

"Out there? Okay," he said and left the room to go looking for his baby sister. He wasn't too happy to hear that she was sitting on the porch again, because he really didn't want visitors to stop by and annoy her.

After hurrying down the stairs, he walked through the living room until he reached the front door. It took him only a split second to notice that she wasn't where she was supposed to be.

He frowned, but then shrugged his shoulders and headed for her room with a little smile on his face. To be honest, he was glad she wasn't outside – he had been busy and therefore was unable to keep an eye on her.

He opened the door to her room and peeked inside, but she wasn't there. So he checked the bathroom for, the kitchen, the garage … well, he checked every single room, but she was nowhere to be found.

"Rose? _Rose!_"

"Don't yell, I can hear you," she replied while ascending the stairs.

"Where's Maddie?" he asked immediately, his eyes wide.

"Sitting on the porch, reading," Rose replied, frowning at his question and the way he was looking at her. She had told him before after all.

"No she's not, Rose. She's neither in the house nor sitting on the porch - I cannot find her."

Rosalie's eyebrows shot up at that info. "Did she go swimming?"

"Yes, maybe... I didn't see or hear her but maybe she's trying to prank us a little," he replied while nodding his head.

Rosalie noticed that he looked a little stressed, so she tried to soothe his nerves some. She placed a hand on his arm and said, "I'm sure she is, she didn't tell me that she wanted to go somewhere." Maddie didn't need to be watched like a toddler, but they still wanted and needed to know where she was at all times.

They walked outside and looked around, but unfortunately they didn't see her … _anywhere_. So they hurried toward the lake to stand on the jetty, searching the dark water for any trace of their sister.

"Mad?" Emmett called when he couldn't see her.

"Maddie?" Rose called.

But they didn't get an answer, which unnerved them quite a bit.

Emmett got ready to jump into the lake and search under water, but Rose held him back. She fished her cell phone from the back pocket of her jeans and speed-dialed her sister's number.

A moment later and they heard a buzzing sound – coming from the house.

Quickly running inside to check where Maddie and her phone was, Rosalie let out a very displeased and frustrated groan when she looked into her sister's room.

Maddie's phone was lying in the middle of the big bed – blinking and buzzing away like there was no tomorrow. It was half hidden by Maddie's blanket, and Rosalie felt the sudden urge to rip that blanket to shreds. But of course she wouldn't do that.

"I don't believe this," she growled, then shut her phone with a click and turned around to storm out of the room again.

Emmett stood in the doorway, looking at the phone on the bed, then at his wife. "She left it here?!"

"Obviously," Rose said through gritted teeth. She was – to be honest – pissed.

_How dare Maddie leave without telling them where she was going?! And then she had the nerve to not even take her phone with her! That little ..._

Okay sure, Maddie was older now and not a newborn anymore. But they were responsible for her and therefore needed to know where she was!

They had two options now: Wait for her to come home or go looking for her.

The thought of sitting here, doing nothing but hoping Maddie was all right and would come home soon was out of the question for them.

So they left in search of her.

* * *

**Next chapter might be up tomorrow :-)**

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	7. Chapter 7

**Aww, thank you for your reviews! I had to hurry a little so I could still post today, hope you like it!**

* * *

Emmett and Rose decided against splitting up to go looking for Maddie. Well, they didn't really talk about it, but each one of them had their own reasons for not suggesting to split up. Rosalie feared that Maddie might not be alone and Emmett might flip and hurt the person who was with her, whereas Emmett feared Rose would just flip and then slap little Maddie for disappearing like that.

So yes, it was indeed better to stay together while searching for the girl.

It was incredibly annoying as well as infuriating that her scent wasn't in the air anymore. She must have left a while ago ...

Their first guess was that she had gone to the houses on the other side of the lake. It was possible that she had decided to visit someone or look for people her age to chat. But when they reached the houses, they immediately noticed that she wasn't there, because neither of them could pick up her scent.

They headed for the forest next, thinking that maybe she had been thirsty. Hopefully she had been, because that was the only excuse Rosalie would accept right now. Oh ... she was mad and with every passing minute that feeling increased. It was actually just a trick of hers … being mad distracted her from the worry she felt.

But after five minutes of running through the forest along the lakeside, they suddenly saw someone strolling towards them.

_Well, she had a nerve..._

They were frantic and concerned, and she just waltzed around like it was perfectly all right! _How dare she?!_

"Maddie," Rose hissed through clenched teeth and narrowed her eyes. It wasn't loud, but still loud enough for a vampire to hear.

Maddie looked up when she heard her name being said and a smile formed on her face. "Hi," she said without slowing or picking up her pace.

They met her half way.

"What was that all about? Are you _crazy_?!" Rose queried angrily, putting her arms akimbo.

"What's wrong?" Maddie asked as innocently as she could manage without letting them know that she knew already. She looked at Emmett standing behind Rosalie, when suddenly Rose spoke again. Well, she didn't just speak, she yelled.

"_What's wrong?! _Oh, let me tell you what's wrong: You leaving without telling us and not even having your phone on you! _That's wrong!_"

Maddie took a step back at her sister's fierce tone of voice. "Chill," she murmured and looked her up and down like she thought Rosalie was nothing but a crazy woman. When Rosalie's eyes narrowed, Maddie wanted to walk past her but got stopped by Emmett blocking her way.

He detected a hint of a smirk on her lips, and he wasn't impressed.

"Maddie, this is not funny," he said, shaking his head.

Okay, _weird_? Emmett was so serious, so grown-up right now. Why was he acting like that?

"Of course it's not funny! First you yell at me, and now Rose is doing the same! What do you want from me?" she queried and took a step back again.

Rose huffed. "We want to know where you are!"

"Well, I'm here," Maddie replied flippantly . _Obvious, huh?_

"You better drop that attitude and you better drop it now," Rose warned in a dangerously low voice.

Gosh ... Rose had been in a great mood the last couple of days and now she was pissed - quite the drastic change.

"Sorry," Maddie said in a subdued voice. She definitely didn't want to make Rose even madder for she already looked like she might snap any moment.

Emmett cleared his throat to catch their attention, then suggested, "Let's go home." They couldn't talk about this here and a little run home might calm all of them.

* * *

They reached the house a minute later and entered through the garage. Maddie walked in first, probably because neither Emmett nor Rose wanted to leave her out of their sight anymore, and headed for her room.

"Ah ah, ah, this way, sweetheart," Rose admonished in a fake sweet tone of voice, grabbed her firmly by the arm and pulled her towards the living room.

Maddie pulled free from her sister's grasp, then slumped down on the couch and crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at her.

Rose noticed and answered the glare with one of her own.

Emmett followed right behind them, then sat down in an armchair and took a deep breath.

But Rosalie, who stood with her arms crossed in front of Maddie, was the first to speak.

"What were you doing in the forest?" she queried without taking her eyes off her little sister. "You know you can come to us when you are thirsty and then we would have taken you."

"I wasn't thirsty," Maddie said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Okay, the only reason Rose would have maybe accepted obviously wasn't the reason for her sister's disappearance. _Well, what else could have been her motivation for leaving?_ "Why did you go to the forest then?"

"I went for a walk," Maddie replied and shrugged her shoulders. Such a simple answer, such a simple thing – taking a walk through the forest.

"You went for a walk," Rosalie replied without the slightest hint of humour detectable in her voice.

"Yes. Ever since we arrived here the sun was shining and I couldn't go outside. I never got the chance to take a look around, so I wanted to do it today," Maddie replied with her hands under her knees, swinging her legs.

It was a simple explanation, and it did make sense - but that didn't mean Rosalie would like it. "Why didn't you tell us you were going for a walk?"

Maddie made a face. "I didn't know it would be that big of a deal, I wasn't gone for long."

"I don't care how long you were gone, Maddie, you weren't _here_. And why was your phone at home and not in your pocket?"

"I didn't think about it. I just wanted to take a quick stroll," Maddie admitted apologetically. An angry Rose was definitely something she could do without.

Rosalie groaned with frustration. "How many times do we have to have this talk, huh?!"

"Rose," Emmett said softly, not wanting her to lose it.

She glanced at him, then took a deep, calming breath. "Maddie, you know better than to leave you phone at home. What's the rule?"

Maddie rolled her eyes, then quickly hugged her knees to her chest when Rose made to slap the side of her leg.

"You better not roll your eyes at me again, you hear?" she told her with a warning finger. "I swear you are in no position where you can afford being disrespectful, missy."

"Sorry ... ," Maddie mumbled, then looked down at the ground. That was obviously not the right time to show Rose what she thought of her scolding.

"Now what's the rule, Maddie? I'm pretty sure you remember, especially after what happened during the last few days."

"Have your phone on you at all times," Maddie answered reluctantly.

"_Exactly_."

"I'm sorry, but … nothing happened." That was a good point actually and maybe her sister should keep it in mind. _Nothing happened!_

"Yes, thank God nothing happened," Rose told her with a sigh and held a hand to her forehead. The worry she had felt earlier was pushing through, reminding her of how glad she should be now that her sister was safe.

The change in her sister's demeanour did not go unnoticed by Maddie and she figured she wouldn't be in trouble if she could give her sister yet another reason. "Rose, please … I didn't want to disrupt you and I just wanted to look around the forest for a little while. I moved at human pace, but it was nobody there anyways."

"Maddie, you know you have to tell us where you are going, so why would you worry about disrupting us?"

"I didn't know what you were doing upstairs and I would be really uncomfortable witnessing you getting it on. Didn't wanna risk that, ew."_ Tee-hee … _

Rosalie drew in a sharp breath and shot her husband a look that implied that it was his turn to do the talking now. Otherwise she really might be running the risk of slapping that girl across the face. _How did Carlisle and Esme manage not to do that when she behaved this way?_

"Tiny, there is nothing wrong with having a look at the area. But we would like to come with you, or at least be able to call you."

Maddie pushed her bottom lip out and hung her head. "But none of you have to tell everyone else what you are doing. Why me? I didn't do anything wrong and there is nothing that could happen. Humans are no threat to us and I'm no threat to them. I have my thirst under control."

Emmett's voice became even softer at seeing her like that. "Is the thought of coming to us to say where you are going really that horrible to you?"

"I guess not ... "

"But...?" Rose felt that there would be a but.

Maddie lifted her head and looked at them, then said, "You're not Mom and Dad."

Rosalie groaned. _Oh great. Was she really trying to pull that card? Trying to tell them she didn't need to listen to them because they weren't her parents?_ Rose knew that Maddie trusted her completely, so _yes_, she expected her sister to listen to her because she meant well, she always meant well. "Of course we aren't. But we are responsible for you. And if you want to go out you better tell us where you are going and take your cell phone with you, because otherwise you won't be going at all."

Maddie's jaw dropped. Sure, she knew Rose was serious and that she would follow through with it. But she had really hoped these holidays would also be holidays from all the rules at home, and therefore from all the stupid punishments as well. "You cannot ground me."

Rosalie snorted. "Of course I can, we both can."

That made Maddie shake her head. "Nuh-uh."

"Oh, yes. If you cannot do as you're told and just disappear without telling us where you are going and we cannot even call you, we can make you stay home."

Oh ... well, that did make sense in a way, but Maddie didn't want to accept it just like that. These holidays were supposed to be completely awesome! Rose was supposed to be easy-going and relaxed, and Emmett to be as much fun as he always was. But right now they were just acting so weird ...

"Mom didn't say you could," she said to Rose. It was true she realised, Esme had never told her that Rose or Em could make her stay home if she didn't do as she was told.

"Would you like to call her and explain what happened? Then we'll see what she has to say about that," Rosalie told her and knew that Maddie would do anything but call their mother now. Esme wouldn't be too impressed with Maddie's 'forgetfulness', and she was certain that Esme would ground her immediately.

Maddie pushed her bottom lip out. No, she certainly didn't want to call her. That might make it worse.

The more people knew, the more complicated it could get. Why? Because she hadn't been completely honest with Em and Rose... Sometimes she cursed herself for being so stubborn, but Emmett's weird behaviour the day before had somehow made her act out today, even though she knew her siblings might notice her absence and wouldn't be too happy with her. In order to hide her true motivation she ... well, lied.

She hadn't told them the complete truth, because she hadn't been alone when she decided to go for a walk. After half an hour of strolling through the forest with that guy she had decided to make him go home, that's why she had been alone when they found her. And after sending Chris away, she had spent another twenty minutes roaming the forest to get rid of whatever smell of him might be on her. They hadn't touched, but who knew what scents Rose and Emmett could pick up? They were older than her, after all.

She had cursed like a sailor in her head when she realised that the two persons walking towards her in the forest were her siblings. They were supposed to be at home, doing whatever without noticing her absence.

"No, I'll do as you say."

"Can I trust you to not leave the house without telling us?" Rose queried to make sure Maddie really understood what she had to do if she wanted to go outside.

"Yes."

Now even Rosalie's voice turned soft again. "I'm glad to hear that," she said and gave Maddie a little smile. She was still a little mad at her, but at least now Maddie knew what was expected of her. So now they wouldn't have a repeat of tonight's incident.

"Can I go to my room now?" Maddie asked. She had enough of this talk and wanted to play with her Gameboy.

"Sure, go ahead," Rosalie replied.

Maddie gave them one of her sweetest smiles. "Thanks."

She was already halfway through the living room when Rosalie's voice made her stop dead in her tracks.

Oh, you'll stay inside tomorrow."

Maddie slowly turned around and shook her head. "I don't think so," she replied defiantly.

"_Excuse me?_"

"The weatherman said it's gonna be a cloudy afternoon tomorrow," Maddie explained.

"I am aware of that, but you will stay inside the house."

Maddie gasped.

_Now that was just plain mean of Rose!_ They would finally have good weather, and she wasn't allowed to enjoy it? "Why?"

"Because I say so, that's why," Rose told her, then watched the look on Maddie's face darken.

"I was gone for a few minutes and you wanna keep me home because of that?! Come on, be reasonable!"

_A few minutes? Not likely!_ "Sweetie, trust me, you don't want me to be reasonable right now. Because if I were, you would be rubbing your little behind by now."

Maddie's eyes bulged and her jaw dropped. She stood there, staring disbelievingly at Rose who just sat down, crossed her legs and picked up the TV remote from the coffee table.

"Em!" Maddie gasped when she found her voice again. _How could he just sit there and not help her?_

Emmett sighed. "Listen to Rose, Tiny." He didn't want this situation to escalate, because his wife might change her mind and decide to be 'reasonable' within a matter of seconds. Besides, not being able to leave the house for one day was nothing compared to what Maddie would have received at home for acting out like that.

Maddie couldn't believe he just said that. Rose was being stupid and she was supposed to accept it? Well, great ...

Then she just turned back around with a huff and went to her room to get away from them and to spend some time with a sane person for a change - _herself_.

When Emmett heard Maddie's door click shut, he turned to look at his wife. "Rose, I don't think you should have said that."

"Said what?" she asked absent-mindedly while watching the news channel.

"That ... you know ... you would smack her," he said.

"Why shouldn't I have said that? Do you want me to lie to her?" she asked and glanced at him, one eyebrow raised. "Besides, I didn't say_ I _would smack her." Then she continued watching TV. She still seemed a little mad, and that was probably the reason why she chose to watch the news - it was just meant to distract her.

Oh … so he was supposed to do that? No, _never_! "Babe, come on," Emmett said and sat down next to her, putting an arm around her shoulders.

"No, Emmett. Right now she doesn't take us seriously when we tell her something. Just because Carlisle and Esme aren't here doesn't mean she can ignore the rules we all have to follow." It was weird how Maddie listened to her and Emmett at home but now that they were alone with her she decided she could do whatever she wanted.

"I know ... but -"

Rosalie turned her head to look at him, sighing. "Emmy, I just said that as a deterrent. Do you really think she'll act up now thinking one of us would spank her for it?"

* * *

**It took me a little while to make this chapter longer, but I managed :-)  
**

**Please review!**


	8. Chapter 8

Saying that Maddie was mad would be a vast understatement.

She just couldn't believe that Rose would be so bossy and then even say she would smack her! _What the heck was wrong with her?_

Carlisle and Esme weren't here, so why should Maddie have to stick to their rules? They would never know as long as Emmett and Rose wouldn't tell them. And she didn't understand why they didn't want to seize the chance to do as they wanted as well. No one would ever know! Two whole weeks of doing whatever they wanted without having to think of the consequences. Besides, Maddie wasn't planning on doing any forbidden things – she had just left her phone at home for crying out loud.

After Maddie had shut the door – she had barely been able to keep herself from slamming it – she slumped down in her big beanbag chair. It made angry rustling noises until the little pellets were settled down, and she crossed her arms in a sulking manner.

She had done nothing wrong ... Rose had no reason to react that way and she certainly had no right to make her stay home or practically threaten her.

But there was a little voice in the back of her head that told her that Rose was just doing as she was told. And she must have been worried to react that way – she often showed anger when she was worried, Maddie had noticed a long time ago.

She figured that anger was a feeling that was easier to handle for Rose – easier than worry. It didn't sound too weird to her, because she herself often got angry even though she should be feeling something else. It got a lot better over the course of the last few years, but somehow it still happened.

_Hm, what now?_ She looked around her room to find something to busy herself with, something to distract her, when her eyes fell on her phone. That stupid phone … she didn't even want that thing. She had her own - lying at home with a flat battery – therefore she didn't need this stupid new thing. But all of a sudden the phone also made her remember something and she got curious, that's why she got up and marched over to her bed. She grabbed the cell off the coverlet and immediately flipped it open.

Maddie had already figured that calling her must have been the first thing that came to her sibling's minds, but since she didn't have her phone on her, she hadn't been able to answer any calls.

And indeed, she had one missed call – _Rosalie_, of course.

Then she noticed the time just when her sister had tried calling her. _Hm, twenty-five minutes ago ..._

Now that made Maddie frown, because they just came home about ten minutes ago.

_Hey, being away for fifteen minutes wasn't that bad, why would Rose make such a fuss about it? _

Sure, that wasn't the truth ... Maddie had been in the forest for about an hour, but Rose couldn't have known.

She dropped her cell phone back onto her bed, then walked over to the window to look out. She scanned the area for something, _anything_, that would explain why Rosalie would suddenly say she'd smack her. What was that bad about what she'd done that her sister would say something like that?

And all of a sudden it clicked.

Ah … her scent. That's how Rosalie must have known. Scents didn't linger in the air forever … normally twenty or thirty minutes later and it would be quite difficult to pick up someone's trail, especially when there was a light breeze that would diffuse it.

So Rose knew she had lied to her about that ... oops. Lying was a no-go at home, and that's why Rose was mad and mentioned a smacking. Come to think of it now it kinda made sense ... _kinda_. Still, she had no right to do that and therefore could have very well kept her mouth shut!

Stomping her foot, Maddie then dropped back into her chair and groaned while thinking about the next day.

Oh well, staying inside for one day wasn't that bad ... the timing was just plain horrible. If the next day would be sunny, then she wouldn't really care that much ... but it was going to be cloudy. Perfect weather for swimming, riding their bikes, playing football, whatever. _Grrr._

* * *

Maddie stood in front of the big window in her room, looking out with a sullen expression on her face. Rose and Emmett had gone outside to go swimming, lying around on the jetty and just having fun on this perfect day.

She was sad that she couldn't join in, but it was okay somehow. Not the grounding - _heck, Rose was being stupid! -_ but the fact that these two were spending time together, alone. They could have that a lot more often but they didn't ... which was something she couldn't quite understand. They were married and probably wanted to spend time together without having to watch her all the time, and she didn't want to be watched at all ... so why make it so hard for all of them?

She briefly considered _making_ them leave her alone for the duration of their vacation ... but no, she couldn't do that. She had never done that to them and she just couldn't do it to people she really trusted. It felt wrong somehow.

Yeah, having a conscience could be a nuisance sometimes ...

It hadn't even been easy lying to them, and now that she knew that Rose knew she hadn't been honest with her - no, that was the furthest she could go.

Maddie turned to the side and leaned her head against the window frame, kicking the floor lightly. What was she supposed to do now? Well, she did have enough books, movies and Emmy's Xbox was upstairs, but somehow ... nah, it just wasn't interesting enough ... and she still had many, many hours left in which she couldn't leave the house.

In the end she decided to set a new highscore on Emmett's Xbox because it would be funny how he'd react, but she didn't even make it to the door. Her phone suddenly bleeped, telling her that she had just received a message.

Wondering whom it was from, she picked up her phone from the desk in her room. Her guess was Alice, but since she wasn't planning on doing something that would be deemed forbidden, having Alice sending her a message seemed weird.

Who else could it be?

She flipped her phone open and read the text.

Awww ... Chris wanted to know how she was doing and if she wanted to go swimming with him.

She scowled out the window at Emmett and Rose snogging on the jetty, then heaved a sigh. She had no choice but to sent a message back, telling him that she didn't have time today but tomorrow would be fine.

And then she was suddenly more than just determined to set a new highscore until her siblings would come back inside.

* * *

Luckily the next day came quickly and it was cloudy again. The sky was grey, and Alice called that morning, telling them there would be a thunderstorm at night.

Maddie was just glad that when she asked Rose if she could go over to the other houses and play basketball, she allowed it. Obediently, Maddie showed her the stupid phone before shoving it into the back pocket of her jeans shorts, and then skipped out of the door and in the direction of a group of people her age who were already filing out of one of the houses and onto the adjoining porch.

Chris had an older brother, Jason, who was nineteen and had a few friends over. A few guys, two girls. They seemed to be fun to hang out with and Maddie knew that this afternoon was going to be awesome, or better yet: Her vacation was finally going to be awesome! Meeting people, hanging out ... it was something so simple and normal and harmless, but to Maddie it felt like some kind of treat after all these years of 'abstinence'.

Maddie noticed that their house was huge, even bigger than the one they were staying at, but they actually didn't even go inside. It wasn't raining yet and so they could play basketball just as they had been planning on doing. While looking around Maddie noticed something she found even cooler than the basketball hoop above the garage: a beautiful ping-pong table standing on the porch. She was excited to see one, and since they were enough people, they could switch between playing table tennis and basketball. So Maddie spent the afternoon playing and getting to know some human teens and it couldn't have been better.

And while she was having fun outside, Rose and Em were at home.

"Where's Maddie?" Emmett asked after a while, looking a little startled. He had been watching TV and Maddie's favourite TV show was about to start, but she was nowhere to be seen. That was weird, because she had never missed a single episode.

"Maddie went to see some people to play basketball. She should be back soon," Rose told her husband absent-mindedly while finishing her nails.

But when he didn't say anything in return, she lifted her head and glanced at him with a certain look in her eyes; it held warning.

What she had said the day before wasn't just supposed to function as a deterrent for Maddie, but also for her dear Emmett. As long as he thought he would have to give her a spanking if she acted out – and she would act out if he didn't let her leave the house on her own to meet people – he would try to keep his temper in check. Stay calm, and therefore keep Maddie calm and they would have a calm, spanking-free vacation. At least Rosalie hoped it would work ...

"Okay ...," Emmett said slowly and leaned back against the backrest of the couch stiffly.

She nodded at him approvingly, then patted the seat next to her so he would scoot closer. He did and put an arm around her shoulders for about two seconds, before grabbing her nail supplies off the coffee table and bolting upstairs as though he was just very obliging.

Not long after that, and Maddie entered the house through the front door, looking happy and relaxed and carefree.

"Hey," she said and kicked her shoes off on the mat next to the door, then made her way over to an armchair and slumped down.

"Hi, did you have fun?" Rose asked, smiling. She was still seated on the couch and immediately pressed the mute button on the TV remote so they could talk a little.

"Yup, we played basketball and you know _what_? They have a ping-pong table!" she told her with bright eyes before leaning back and letting out a sigh. "... haven't played that for at least one and a half years!" Then she pulled her legs up to rest sideways over the armrest of the chair she was sitting on.

Rosalie liked seeing her happy and a warm feeling formed in her chest, right where her heart was. Hopefully Emmett would feel the same way and realise that it was good for the girl to spend time with people outside the family so she would finally have a sense of independence.

"Hey Rose," Maddie then asked, frowning a little. "Why don't we have one at home?"

"I don't know," Rosalie said honestly after thinking about it, then shrugged her shoulders and smiled. "I'm sure we can get one if you like."

"Uh-huh." Maddie had played table tennis at the Denali's,_ a lot_. A ping-pong table was one of the many fun things they had in the basement and it was supposed to help Maddie learn to handle her strength with caution. These tiny table tennis balls were so light, that it took her a while to learn how to not accidentally break them between her fingers or with a smash.

"Tiny!" Emmett exlaimed when he entered the living room. Yep, he had spent some time upstairs, secretly watching his sister and the other kids from the bathroom window. When he had noticed Maddie walking away from the group and in the direction of their house, he had sped downstairs and into the garage to pretend he had been busy fixing the bikes or something.

"Em!" she called and smiled at him with a happy gleam in her eyes.

"So ... you played basketball?" he asked and tickled the bottom of her foot, making her pull her leg back so he could pass and stand before her.

"Yes," she said after her giggles had died down. "And you know what's fun? I am so much better at it than humans, ha!"

He laughed. "And you know what's also fun? I found a basketball hoop in the garage! Mom and Dad got it for us, and I just put it outside so we can set it up," he informed her with a huge grin plastered across his face. He figured that since they also had a hoop now, she wouldn't need to go see humans in order to get to play it.

"Cool," she replied while wiping a stray strand of hair out of her face. She didn't sound quite as enthusiastic as her big brother, but he didn't notice ... yet.

"Now you and I can play again!" he said happily and smiled at her.

"Um ... no it's okay. But thanks," was all she said and it made Emmett frown.

"What? What's the problem?" She had just been so excited about basketball, and her answer just now didn't make any sense to him.

"Nothing, I just don't wanna play basketball," she told him and shrugged her shoulders in a dismissive manner while brushing a little dirt off the hem of her shirt.

And that made even less sense to Emmett. "Why? You just played basketball and liked it, didn't you?" Then he sat down on the armrest of the couch, never taking his eyes off his young sister.

Maddie sighed, then looked up into his face. "Emmy, I just don't wanna play it ... with _you_," she tried to explain. "Sorry."

Oh, now he seemed sad ... that wasn't her intention. So she tried to explain further, hoping that he would understand. "It's just ... it isn't that much fun with you ...," she said slowly, biting her lip.

"What?" He stared at her with big eyes.

_Was he in shock?_ "Look ... I never have the slightest chance of winning against you," she said. "It's frustrating."

Then she jumped up because she remembered something very important - somthing that was obligatory for her 'freedom'. "Oops, need to charge my phone!" Then she ran from the room and right into her own.

He still sat there, stunned.

Rose noticed and asked, "Emmett, are you all right?"

But he didn't answer, he didn't even turn his head to look at her.

"Aww baby," she cooed with a slight chuckle and pulled at his hand to make him sit next to her. When he sat down on the couch, she sat up on her knees and wrapped her arms around him. "Come on, it is just one type of sport."

"Yeah ...," he mumbled in response.

She laughed and rested her cheek against his head for a moment, then drew back to give him a kiss on the lips.

"You still have your mountain bikes, Emmett. Just go ask her if she wants to ride them through the forest with you. Or you could go swimming."

"What if she prefers to ride her mountain bike with them?" he asked grumpily before shooting a narrow-eyed glare out of the window and in the direction of the house Maddie had just come from minutes ago. "Or going swimming?"

"She just spent a few hours playing with some humans her age. Why would she want to do everything with them now, hm?"

He huffed. "I dunno ... you ask her why she would want to do that."

And Rosalie just laughed while patting his hair. "Oh, Emmy..."

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**I'll have the next chapter up soon I guess. I'll try!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey there!**

**Thanks for reviewing and here comes the next chapter for you!  
**

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After stopping his car in the driveway, Emmett pulled the key out of the ignition and opened the driver's door. The smell of rain still hung in the air and he took a long breath, glad that it was another wonderful cloudy day that had made it possible for him to drive into the nearest town. It really was nothing more than one street and three shops, but luckily Emmett found exactly what he had been looking for. He reached over to the passenger seat and grabbed his purchase, then hopped from the car and closed the door. With a skip in his step and a whistle on his lips he made his way around the car and onto the wooden porch. No word could describe how happy he was that the rest of the week would be cloudy and rainy, because it allowed them to leave the house whenever they wanted to do whatever they wanted. Seriously, staying inside all the time ... what kind of holidays would that be?

He entered the house with a bunch of red roses in his hands, smiling sweetly at his wife when she turned around and spotted him standing there in the doorway.

She couldn't suppress a smile when Emmett approached her, holding the sweet-smelling flowers in one hand while using his other to take Rosalie's hand and give her a twirl before pulling her close.

Her hands were placed on his muscular chest, and she glanced up at him with warm, golden eyes that were just as beautiful as he remembered them when he had seen her for the first time.

"These are for you, Rosie, but I'm afraid they pale in comparison to your beauty," he told her lovingly and she got up on her tip-toes to gently press her lips against his.

"I love them, Em," she whispered and drew closer to the bouquet to inhale the wonderful scent.

"And I love you, baby."

"I love you, too." She kissed him on the lips again, then suddenly laughed out loud. "Is this because of last night? You know you don't have to thank me for it, it was my pleasure."

"I know," he said and then grinned which made his dimples come out. "Wanna put them in a vase?"

"Yes, I don't want them to wither. I want to enjoy them for as long as possible."

"Some of the buds are just partially open, you see?" he said proudly. Yes, he did know a little about flowers, and if you buy them when they are not in full bloom yet, the bouquet would last longer.

She laughed a sweet, happy laugh. "Yes, I can see that, baby."

Then she took the bouquet from his hands and watched him leave for the kitchen in search of a vase.

She sat down on the couch and admired the beautiful roses her husband had just given her - oh, how lucky she was to have found someone like him.

While she removed the foliage, she could hear the tap being opened and water running into a high container, then her husband's heavy footsteps heading for the couch she was sitting on.

"Here," he said and put a glass vase half filled with water onto the coffee table, then reached out for the flowers. "Let me help you with that."

He gently placed his big hands around hers, completely covering them, and together they put the flowers into the water. Then he sat down next to her and felt her leaning against him.

"What did I do to deserve such a gift from you, hm?" she asked and glanced up at him.

Emmett brushed a golden lock out of her face and tucked it behind her ear before cupping her face and running his thumb lightly across her cheekbone. "You deserve so much more than just these ordinary flowers."

"Hey, don't insult my roses, my husband gave them to me because he loves me," she replied and smiled.

"Yes, he does," All of a sudden a smirk appeared on his face after he said that and the moment Rosalie realised what he was about to do, he had already tackled her. She squealed and laughed and when he wrapped his arms around her, they suddenly forgot everything around them and engaged in a passionate make out session right on the couch.

It must have gotten a little too wild, because after what felt like nothing more than a few seconds a loud noise - like something just fell over - made them pull apart and look around to find the source of the rude disruption.

They noticed that the glass vase was lying on its side now, leaving the flowers lying in a puddle of water on the table.

"Oops," Emmett said sheepishly. But a moment later it seemed that he didn't really care, because he just shrugged his shoulders and moved his lips toward his wife's once again, determined to pick up where they left off, but she stopped him with her hands on his chest.

"The flowers need water, Emmy, and we have to clean this up." The water was dripping from the table onto the thick carpet, and Rosalie had to admit that she was kinda glad they got interrupted. She didn't want Maddie to walk in on them having sex and since they were still in the living room ...

Emmett couldn't suppress a groan, because kissing was a lot more fun than mopping up water. But he climbed off the couch - although begrudgingly - and ran his fingers threw his dark hair. Well, they couldn't have gone any further with a child in the house that could enter the living room any moment ... okay.

The bathroom downstairs, the one Maddie had all to herself, was closest and so Emmett headed for that room. He grabbed a towel from the little closet when his eyes suddenly fell on some kind of fabric lying on the floor. He reached down and picked it up, then pinned the towel under his left arm to have a closer look at what he just found. Spreading it out with both his hands, holding it delicately between thumb and index finger, he saw that it was a tiny bikini bottom, black with little pink dots all over it and strings to tie at the hips.

He smirked, then placed it on the rim of the wash basin and grabbed the matching bikini top that was also lying discarded on the ground. Immediately he hurried back into the living room and held the towel out for his wife to take, all the while grinning like an idiot.

While Rosalie was mopping up the water on the table, she asked, "Why are you grinning?"

"Babe, I_ knew_ you wanna go swimming with me again! But isn't this tiny little thing a little too revealing for you?" The triangles wouldn't cover much of her breasts and he wasn't sure why she would buy a piece like that. Not that he didn't like it, but this bikini just wasn't her.

When she looked up at him with a confused facial expression, she detected the little piece of fabric in his hands and rolled her eyes when he started to wiggle his eyebrows.

"Emmett, that's Maddie's," she said dryly and continued to wipe up the spilled water.

"Oh my God!" it blurted out of him in a half-scream and he threw it onto the couch as though burned.

His chest was rising and falling rapidly - he was trying to process what Rose had just told him.

"Why would she need something like that?" he managed to ask, still completely shocked.

"It's a bikini, girls wear it when they go swimming. And because Maddie wanted to go swimming, she tried on a few. Makes sense?"

His face scrunched up in confusion. "But Maddie's here."

"No, she isn't. She went swimming."

He huffed. "How come I'm never around when she asks if she could go somewhere?" he asked while hurrying toward the window to look out.

"Well, you weren't home and it doesn't matter whom she tells where she's going as long as she doesn't just leave," Rose replied and bent down to place the towel on the wet spot on the carpet.

Emmett's eye bulged when he looked over at the other side of the lake and detected his little sister with a bunch of other youths, playing around in the water.

"Wh-" He gasped until he could finally say something. "Wh-what -"

"She said she wanted to go swimming with a few people, so I told her to have fun," Rosalie said so he wouldn't need to stammer some more.

"When did she grow these?!" he finally asked, completely and utterly shocked.

_Huh?_

Rosalie snorted. "She had them all along, darling. Now stop watching the kids, leave them alone."

"Yes, I will damn well stop watching them," he all but growled and marched over to the front door.

Seeing that, Rose realised that she had to act fast. She needed to distract her husband until Maddie would come home - the girl was supposed to have fun and since she was allowed to be outsid, it wouldn't be fair for Emmett to drag her back inside and yell at her.

"Jacuzzi."

He stopped dead in his tracks and turned back around, staring at Rose with wide eyes.

She walked over to stand at the bottom of the stairs and said in a seductive voice, "I'll get the Jacuzzi ready and then I'll show you mine if you show me yours."

He took a sharp breath and when he watched his wife climb the stairs, he was just about to bolt after her. But the moment she was out of sight, the worry about his naive baby sister evaded his mind once again. Going upstairs was something he really, _really_ wanted to do … but he had a responsibility here!

Maybe if he was quick enough he could do both ... or he would just call Maddie and tell her she needed to come home because ... something happened. It was safer for her to be home in her room than outside, unattended, with a bunch of guys.

So first he ran into Maddie's room to see if she had remembered to take her cell phone with her, but it was lying on her bedside table he noticed. That was fine with him, because now he had the perfect excuse to go outside and collect her.

With that thought in mind, he stormed out of the house and over to the playing kids. They didn't notice him approaching, being completely focussed on playing some kind of water volleyball, but he picked up his pace when he saw a guy playfully nudging Maddie's shoulder with his. _How much time had she spent with them already?!_ She normally avoided any physical contact with human, until she got the chance to compel them into believing that her skin felt warm and they had to control their strength when touching her like she was something very fragile. She just wanted to make sure they wouldn't hurt themselves when slapping her on the back or giving her a high five.

The closer he got, the more shocked he became - if that was even possible. His sister was practically naked, in front of no less than five guys!_ Was she out of her mind?!_

"I think you brother's here," the porch-boy said, and it made Maddie look around until her eyes met Emmett's. She frowned, then stood up and suddenly the water was only reaching up to her navel. She walked toward him and each step she took revealed more of her body.

Emmett tried to contain himself, he really did, but before she had fully emerged from the lake, he was already hurrying toward her, shedding himself out of his hoodie jacket. He draped the huge piece over her shoulders as though she was cold, then pulled her along by her upper arm. He only reached down once, to grab a T-shirt and hotpants he knew belonged to her, then walked on.

"Em! What the hell?!" she whispered fiercely under her breath while subtly trying to pull her arm free from his grasp. "Stop it!" He let go, only to grab her hand instead.

This situation was incredibly embarrassing to Maddie ... he treated her like a naughty child in front of so many people. _How dare he?!_

Emmett's brow was wrinkled as he purposefully strode along, pulling his sister by the hand.

When they were about thirty feet from the bunch of human teens she let out a deep growl, and he stopped and turned to face her immediately.

This was actually exactly what Maddie had been hoping for, because now it just seemed that Emmett had something to discuss with her in private, just having pulled her away to make sure they couldn't be overheard.

"Don't growl at me, Tiny," he told her, his eyes still narrowed with displeasure.

"What do you think you're doing here?" she asked in confusion and once again tried to free herself from his grasp, but he seemed to not even notice the attempt.

"I'm taking you home," he replied matter-of-factly.

"Why?"

"Because." And then - much to Maddie's displeasure - he made to continue the walk back to their house.

Maddie pulled her shoulder back with a jerk so he couldn't walk on, and it worked.

"No," she said decisively. "I'm allowed to be here, Rose let me."

"But I wouldn't have let you, especially if I had known what you'd be wearing. You're practically naked!"

"No, I'm not! I'm wearing a bikini!" she argued. The one she had chosen was very simple and dark green and most importantly not as flimsy as the other ones. She hadn't bought any of these things, Alice had. So why was Emmett mad at her? He should complain to Alice ... or to Rose for telling her she couldn't go swimming in her clothes.

His eyes blazed before he narrowed them again. "That is not a_ bikini! _A bikini covers something, but this thing -"

"Oh, you don't like it? Let me take it off then," she replied spitefully and pulled her wrist from his grasp, then made to take of his jacket. He was being ridiculous - it angered her immensely.

And his eyes bulged. Quickly he reached out and held it in place while shaking his head at her. "Keep it on and zip up!"

She took a step back, so he just took the hem of the hoodie jacket between his hands and pulled the zipper up. The jacket was so huge on her that it covered her from mid-thigh up to her neck, which was exactly what he had been hoping for.

Maddie was seething now … just like Emmett.

It was weird that both of them could be completely happy at that moment and have fun – Maddie swimming and Emmett upstairs with Rose – but instead they were mad at each other.

Emmett took Maddie by the hand again and she let him lead her back to the house. There was no use in arguing with him right now, and she could use the time to think of an excuse that would explain Emmett's weird behaviour to the humans. Besides, since she hadn't done anything wrong, she hoped Rose could tell Emmett to cut the crap so she could go swimming again.

Rose stood on the porch when Emmett and Maddie reached the house. She had her arms crossed over her chest and didn't look too happy either.

"What now?" she asked and she sounded exasperated.

"Tell him to let me go!" Maddie called and tried once again to pull her hand out of his, but it was a futile attempt - Emmett was just too strong and oddly determined to make her miserable.

Rose frowned when she saw what Maddie and Emmett were doing and got slightly nervous. Maybe Emmett was doing the right thing? Did Maddie do something that he would have to bring her home? "What happened?"

"Let's go inside and then Maddie can show you what happened," he replied in a dark voice and stomped up the stairs onto the front porch with Maddie in tow.

Maddie let out a growl again, because she hadn't done anything wrong and Emmett was still being completely stupid.

Hearing that made Rose sigh, then she turned and opened the front door. She walked in and held the door for the other two, then closed it after they had passed her.

Immediately Maddie wrenched her arm from Emmett's grip and glowered at him like she couldn't stand his presence.

"So?" Rose queried.

"I caught her skinny-dipping."

"Are you kidding me?" Maddie asked at the same time as Rosalie asked her, "You did _what?_"

With an aggravated sigh, Maddie pulled down the zipper of Emmett's hoodie and showed her bikini-clad body. "I wasn't skinny-dipping, Emmett is just being a fucking jerk again."

"Watch it," Rosalie warned Maddie, then fixed her husband with a glare. "I told you she could go swimming and I told you to leave them alone, Emmett!"

"Well, I-" he stammered, but then couldn't come up with any good reasoning that Rosalie would accept and so he huffed. He let his gaze roam for a moment when all of a sudden a thought struck him. "She didn't have her phone on her!"

"Maddie!"

"What the hell? I went swimming! _Over there!_" Maddie replied exasperatedly and took a few steps backwards, only to point directly at the lake through the window.

"You still have to have your phone with you!" Emmett argued.

"Are you stupid? Last time it got water damaged and Rose was mad!" she countered.

"Okay, okay, you two. Stop. I'm not in the mood for your arguing," Rosalie said, then walked over to the couch and sat down. She hoped that her dismissive behaviour would show them that they were both being ridiculous and she didn't want to get pulled into this. Emmett didn't have any right to keep Maddie from seeing people, whereas Maddie should know that insulting her brother wouldn't help to make him see reason.

"Me neither," Maddie replied and made to walk over to the front door, but Emmett blocked her way. "Move," she growled.

"You stay here until you have put on some decent clothes."

"Decent clothes? I'm going _swimming_!" Her voice was whiny with the amount of frustration she felt.

And suddenly Emmett looked like he was calm and himself again. "Okay ... how about you and I go swimming?" he suggested and smiled. She would say yes he figured, because that way she could keep on whatever she was wearing now and didn't need to walk all the way back to these weird human teens. He was a way better buddy for her anyways. "We always go swimming together."

That made her huff, turn around and stomp over to Rosalie sitting on the couch. "Make him stop."

"I'm staying out of it," Rose said and folded her arms while turning her head away from them.

Seeing that his sister wasn't interested in accepting his offer, Emmett walked over to them and held Maddie's shirt and pants out to her. "Here, take it and put it on."

Maddie wrenched the clothes from his hand and threw them forcefully onto the couch. Then she quickly shed out of her brother's hoodie jacket and threw it at him, nearly hitting him in the face with it. "Here, take it and shove it up your ass!" she almost yelled.

Rose's eyes went wide at hearing that, while Emmett just asked, "What did you just say to me?" That was definitely not what he would have expected from her. He was her favourite brother, so how could she be so rude to him?

"I said," Maddie replied in a deadly calm tone of voice and looked straight into her brother's eyes that suddenly became unusually vacant-looking. "_take it and -_"

A jolt of panic shot through Rosalie when she noticed, and without thinking she reached out and cracked Maddie sharply on the butt in an attempt to break the connection.

"_Ouch!_" Maddie hissed and one of her hands shot back to cover the smarting spot on her behind. She looked over her shoulder at her sister with an expression of sheer disbelief and confusion.

While Emmett needed a second to come around, Rosalie exhaled the breath that she hadn't realised she'd been holding, then narrowed her eyes.

"Go to your room."

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**Please review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hello my dear readers and thank you for your reviews!**

**Wow, okay, last chapter was a bit of drama, eh? But I felt it was necessary for the story, that's why it had to happen :-/**

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Once in her room, Maddie leaned with her back against the door and rubbed her left eye with her knuckles. The venom that was blurring her vision stung and it was only adding to the discomfort she was feeling. Just until a few seconds ago she had felt nothing but anger - it had only left her because of the unexpected smack she had received from her sister. It had taken her off guard and startled her, but now that she was in the safety of her room and could reflect on what had just taken place in the living room, she was actually glad Rose had done it.

She hadn't even realised just what she had been doing, but now she knew that it would have been horrible to watch. How could she lose it like that? How could she do that to Emmett?

Guilt gnawed at her insides while she tried to blink the tears away, unconsciously rubbing at the still aching spot where Rose had struck her.

She didn't even know what to do now … she had been allowed to be outside, and she hadn't even needed to ask for approval - she only did it because she knew Rose would appreciate it. Oh, it was frustrating ... she hadn't done anything wrong, but was in trouble anyways. So what the heck was she supposed to do now?

While she stood there in her room, unsure of what to do, a thought suddenly popped into her mind.

She could just call Esme and ask if it would be okay for her to come home early ... maybe Jasper would pick her up. Then she'd just spend her holidays in Forks, following the same routine she always had. It sounded boring, but at least she could meet humans without getting yelled at.

Once again anger made itself known at the unfairness of it all, and it mixed with guilt and an uneasy feeling about what would happen next.

When she pushed away from the door to pick up her phone lying on the bedside table, Maddie realised that she was still without socks or shoes and wearing nothing but a wet bikini – something that had made the sting of the smack undeniably worse. Deciding that she wouldn't want to risk getting yet another swat on a wet bottom, she walked over to her closet and opened it.

She pulled out some dry clothes, then drew the curtains and got changed – there was no way in hell she would leave her room now to take a shower or get changed in her bathroom. She didn't feel like seeing Rose or Emmett at that moment, and she didn't want Rose thinking she was disobeying her by leaving her room.

Dressed in an old pair of sweatpants and a large hoodie, she then slumped down onto her bed and buried her head in a pillow. Never would she have expected her holidays to be that shitty, never!

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Rosalie watched her sister turn around and head for her room, just like she told her. She was glad that Maddie obeyed, as she wanted her to leave the situation now before it got even more out of hand than it already had. All of them were probably equally shocked right now and could use a minute to think.

"Are you all right?" Rosalie asked when she noticed Emmett blink his eyes.

"Yes," he replied and nodded his head, but abruptly stopped and drew in a sharp breath through his teeth. "_Ow!_"

"What's wrong?" she asked, sounding panicky, and helped him sit down on the couch, hoping he was all right.

"Just some kind of headache, I guess. It's gone now," he told his wife to calm her. A white-hot pain had shot right through his head, but as quickly as it had come, it was gone again.

_Oh._ As Rosalie had forced Maddie to sever the connection, the girl hadn't been able to ease out of Emmett's mind, leaving him with the sudden loss of her influence and therefore a blank mind. She didn't know how that could evoke a headache, but it obviously did.

He held a hand to his forehead and breathed out, then raked his fingers through his hair. "Um, babe … what happened?"

"You don't know?" she asked and her eyes widened while she felt a lump building in her throat.

"To be honest, I'm not sure if I do," he admitted and gazed at her, his eyes the colour of dark caramel now. Stress and uncertainty weren't doing him any good right now it seemed.

"Maddie was in the process of compelling you to do something ... very unpleasant and ... inappropriate with your jacket."

"Oh," he replied and distorted his mouth, remembering what his little sister had said before he asked her to repeat it. "Yeah ... that would've sucked. A lot, actually."

"Exactly."

Then he continued, and an odd smirk appeared on his lips. "I mean, just imagine -"

"Emmett, I don't want to imagine. It's not funny, okay?" Rosalie could not see how he could find this amusing now - he must still be suffering from the shock she assumed. The only logical explanation.

"Of course it's not funny!" he said. It would only be funny if it wasn't his butt that would be used for making stuff disappear. "I'm glad she didn't follow through with it after all."

Rosalie nodded, then told him in a calm tone of voice, "She was really mad." Hopefully he would see that he had been one of the reasons for Maddie's anger.

"Yeah … but why did she stop then?" It just didn't make sense to him that Maddie would be infuriated enough to use her talent on him, but then suddenly change her mind like her anger had vanished into thin air.

"I … swatted her," she admitted.

"Oh," he breathed and Rosalie nodded her head. She knew that Emmett realised the severity of the situation now, and that his behaviour had let to his sister getting smacked.

Rosalie let out an uneasy sigh, because now they had to talk about what happened, admit to both their mistakes, and figure out a way to not repeat them in the future.

It was just weird – normally spending time with Maddie was a lot easier than it was now. In case she misbehaved, Carlisle and Esme took care of it and all they needed to do was comfort Maddie or explain things to her. They never needed to really assume the position of being solely responsible for her. Never in a million years would they have thought that it would be so hard to take care of a child, never.

The main problem today was Emmett's behaviour actually. He was this overprotective big bear, that sometimes just acted without thinking – only driven by this instinct to protect his family. That had made him ignore Rosalie's words to leave the girl alone and let her have fun with people her age. He just flipped and was completely convinced that there was nothing wrong with his behaviour. Well, maybe not anymore as he could see what would have happened to him if Rose hadn't interfered and what actually happened – Maddie got smacked.

Rosalie took a deep breath and leaned back on the couch, pinching the bridge of her nose like Carlisle always did in stressful situations.

She had allowed Maddie to leave the house to spend time at the lake with people her age, and asked her to put on a bathing suit or the like so she wouldn't look weird next to the other teens and in order to not drip water all over the ground floor when she would come back. There had been no problem whatsoever, until Emmett saw her with the human kids swimming in the water.

Then – when Rosalie noticed her husband's absence, she had already figured where he was at and what he was doing. And indeed, when she opened the front door, she could see him marching toward the house, leading a scowling Maddie by the hand.

She had been so certain that Emmett was in the wrong, but then doubts snaked themselves into her thoughts when they came closer. As soon as they were inside she found out the truth and knew that Maddie had indeed been dragged away from the lake for no reason. That wasn't fair and she wanted to say something – but couldn't. Everything happened so fast and then there was the cussing and Emmett's obtuseness; both of them were in high dudgeon and it got a little too much for Rose at that moment - so she made a decision. It was the wrong one, she knew that by now, but at that time it seemed like a good idea.

She had counted on Emmett's senses to kick back in, so that he would see reason and notice that he was in the wrong and completely out of line. She had hoped he would manage to calm himself as well as Maddie in order to discuss the problem, and she had hoped he would remember what she'd told him before.

At the same time she had hoped Maddie would take a deep breath and actually realise what Emmett was saying – he was scared she didn't want to spend time with him anymore because she had human friends now. So yes, there was more than one reason for his odd behaviour, and Rose had trusted Maddie to notice the insecurity behind Emmett's words. She knew him well enough to notice that – but she obviously didn't due to the anger she had felt. And then it was already too late.

"What do we do now?" Emmett asked carefully and eyed his wife who seemed to have gotten more and more frustrated and disappointed with something – or someone.

She took her hand away from her face and let it drop to her lap. Then she lifted her head and fixed him with a level look. "We need to put an end to this, and there is only one way."

He gasped. "Oh come on! It wasn't that bad what she did! I am so not going in there and spank her, forget it!" he replied in a hurry, his voice taking on a hint of panic.

"No, it _was_ bad, Em -" she started to say, but he interrupted her.

"You cannot be serious and expect me to spank her, Rose!" he whispered fiercely, trying to make sure Maddie wouldn't be able to overhear. "I could never do that!"

Rose raised one eyebrow and waited for him to finish his rant after he had so rudely interrupted her, then she snorted. "Oh, Emmett ..."

His face scrunched up in confusion. "What?"

"Do you really think I wouldn't know that?" she asked him and flipped her hair back over her shoulder, then looked him in the eye again.

Somehow Emmett had trouble following. "... _what_? But you said -"

"Emmett," she said with a groan, "you are a teddy bear, a big fluffy button-eyed bear without claws. You are someone who cannot bear to see a girl cry, much less be the reason for it."

When he just stared at her with his mouth hanging open, she continued. "I was trying to keep you from reacting like you did today, in order to avoid a situation like it occurred just now. I was hoping that if you thought you'd have to discipline her if she acted out, you'd be a little more careful."

"So that means … _you_ are going to spank her? Oh come on, Rose, that's just -"

"Don't be ridiculous."

"But you said -"

"I didn't say anything, Emmy. I never said I would spank her in the near future, just wanted her to think it could happen," she remarked and hoped he would leave it at that, because she wasn't sure if he had figured out that Maddie had been lying to them a few days ago. The only reason for mentioning a spanking had been to remind Maddie that just because they were on a vacation without Carlisle and Esme, it didn't mean she could do whatever she wanted and actually deceive them. They were responsible for her now, and they could only grant her the freedom she deserved as long as they could trust her.

"Oh," he uttered and relief showed on his face after a moment.

Rosalie rolled her eyes without him noticing and shook her head. He really couldn't switch off his overprotective instinct over his baby sister …

"Hey, you said we need to take care of it and there's only one way. What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means, you need to let her be a teenager."

"What are you even talking about? I let her be a teenager, she can do whatever she wants!"

Rosalie raised one eyebrow at that. "You dragged her back to the house."

"That," he said and gestured around with his finger, trying to find the right words. "was for her own good. She's not safe with people like them."

"How, Emmett? It's not dark outside, she was where we could see her and she told me where she was going before she left. We know less about her whereabouts when she goes somewhere after school than here at the lake. You should be glad."

"I don't trust them, Rose. I just have that feeling something's wrong with them. Besides, she left her phone at home and you know very well that that's not okay."

"I think I'll go talk to her now," Rosalie said and stood up from the couch. She didn't take her husband's concern seriously, because he was only trying to cover up the fact that he was scared his sister might develop certain interests in boys when spending time with them.

* * *

While Maddie was lying on her bed, trying to collect her thoughts, she heard someone knock on her door.

"Maddie?" Rosalie called from the other side of the door, waiting for Maddie to allow her to enter.

But Maddie wasn't in the mood for talking to her, so she remained silent and hoped her sister would walk away again and just leave her alone.

"Maddie? Can I come in?"

_Ugh._ "No."

"I see," Rosalie replied, then asked after a moment of silence, "Would you come outside then?"

"No," she answered before burying her face in the thick, downy pillow again.

"Hm, how shall we talk about what happened then?"

"We just don't," Maddie replied, her voice was muffled by the pillow but still audible to Rose.

"Come on, Maddie," Rosalie said in a soft tone of voice, trying once more to get Maddie to agree to talk it over.

After letting out a long groan to show Rose just how unwilling she was, she murmured, "Fine."

Then Maddie pushed herself up into a sitting position, and while she brushed her hair out of her face, she said, "Come in."

Maddie's eyes were glossy when Rosalie saw them for a moment before Maddie turned away from her and lay down once again. She felt ashamed and angry and confused, and she didn't know which one these feelings Rose would detect in her eyes. Besides, as long as she didn't know what Rose had in store for her, she thought it would be safer to hide her emotions as best she could.

Hesitantly, Rose closed the door then slowly walked over to the bed Maddie was lying on.

She sat down, and before she could place a hand on her shoulder, Maddie jerked it away.

Seeing that her sister didn't want to be touched, Rosalie retracted her hand again, not wanting to disturb her any further. The calmness she felt confused her, because Emmett had been in danger and it should really infuriate her ... but Emmett was fine now and Maddie had felt provoked by him, so that obviously soothed her nerves somehow. "I'd like to ask you something. Could you sit up and look at me?"

"No," Maddie groaned into the pillow.

Rosalie sighed. She understood where that was coming from, and she couldn't blame her for it.

"You were about to compel Emmett," she stated, hoping they could still have an honest conversation even though Maddie wasn't looking at her.

Guilt came back full force at hearing what Rose just said, and Maddie tried to swallow the thick lump of venom in her throat away while turning her head to look at her. "Is he okay?" she asked hesitantly, her voice shaking with fear that she might have seriously hurt him. She had never been interrupted while compelling someone, never broken the connection so abruptly, and therefore didn't know if the other person would suffer trauma or something.

"Yes, he is," Rosalie replied and nodded her head. "But how could you do something like that? That is so unlike you."

Maddie averted her eyes, then whispered, "I didn't do it on purpose."

A silent gasp escaped Rosalie's lips. "You lost control over your ability?" Oh dear, that wasn't good, not good at all. Well, she was glad Maddie hadn't purposely tried to harm Emmett, but that she had been so upset that she didn't even notice she was in the process of compelling someone ... Emmett would most definitely need to hear about that.

Maddie bit her lip while trying to keep the tears at bay, then said in a voice barely above a whisper, "I wanna go home." The shock and disbelief in her sister's voice made her feel so small, and she longed for someone to hug her right then.

"Maddie, please. Let us talk about it before you really want to end your vacation," Rose said and saw something change in Maddie's eyes. Her gaze hardened with sudden anger and gone was the look of trepidation.

"Vacation," Maddie snorted and shook her head in disbelief. "My vacation hasn't even started yet! I cannot even take a single step out of the house without having Emmett drag me back inside or watch me like I was going to run off or something!"

"He takes this responsibility-thing a little too far, I agree. I will talk to him, don't worry."

"How am I supposed to trust you, huh? I told you I would go to the lake and you said it was okay, and then Emmett's storms out and walks me back to the house like I did something wrong! Why didn't you tell him that it was okay?" she queried, infuriated by the memory that was playing in her head.

"I am so sorry. I did, but he obviously didn't listen."

"Great. Are you aware that I am once again the freak just because of you two?"

Rose looked perplexed. "What do you mean?"

"Just imagine someone causing a scene in front of a bunch of people and then dragging you away by your hand. That was embarrassing."

Rose reached out to place a hand on Maddie's forearm, trying to comfort her, but Maddie didn't want to be comforted by her. She was a lot more angry than sad now, and she pulled her arm away and glowered at Rose until she withdrew her hand and placed it in her lap once again. Then Maddie continued.

"I neither want Emmett to look like an unreasonable idiot, nor do I want to look like a toddler that had just run off. Now I have to send a text to one of them, explaining that I forgot to take my epilepsy medication and therefore run the risk of getting a seizure. Emmett had noticed and came outside to find me because he was concerned," Maddie explained, her face twisted into a bitter mask.

Rose nodded. "That is a very good explanation for what happened, Maddie. How do you know something like that?"

"You think I'm too stupid to read a book, huh?" she spat, but then took a deep breath and continued in a voice that was a lot calmer than before. "Jasper told me to have an excuse ready for all kinds of awkward situations, and he told me to look up different sicknesses for we quickly forget what symptoms a cold or chicken pox actually have."

"My question wasn't meant to offend, I apologise if it came across like that," Rosalie said and saw Maddie nod her head after a moment, acknowledging her apology. "But to be honest, I don't see how you'd be a freak because of something like that."

"It's always the same," Maddie replied, and buried her hands in the front pocket of her hoodie. "As if the way I look wasn't enough, now they think I have a chronic neurological disorder." She hung her head and added in a whisper, "I can never fit in like a normal person."

Rose tucked a strand of hair behind Maddie's ear and was glad she didn't pull away this time. "What's wrong with the way you look?"

"Are you kidding me? As if you haven't noticed that trait about us. We look like freakin' photoshopped humans. With yellow eyes."

"We just stand out because we are prettier than humans. Looking pretty doesn't make you a freak, Maddie," Rose explained. She never really had a problem with the way she looked. She enjoyed that no matter where she went she was always the prettiest person in the room.

"I don't wanna stand out, I just wanna be normal and fit in and have fun."

"The way we look is something we cannot change," Rosalie said softly, because they really couldn't make themselves look ugly.

Maddie let herself fall backwards to rest with her upper body on the bed, then covered her face with her hands. "I know ... but having to tell people I have freakin' epilepsy doesn't really help my situation."

Rose sighed and lay down right next to Maddie, smiling at the girl when she noticed. "It doesn't make it worse, either. I spent a lot of years on this planet already, so trust me. People will notice you no matter what."

Maddie suddenly gasped. "What the heck are you doing, Rose?" she asked warily and propped herself up on her elbows, confusion detectable in her voice.

"I cannot seem to follow you."

"You are talking to me like nothing happened, but you only came in here because you are going to smack me, right?" Maddie queried, suspicion visible in her slightly narrowed eyes. "I'll tell Mom if you try."

Of course Maddie didn't want to get smacked, and she certainly didn't want her sister to be the one to do it. Besides, except for losing control she hadn't done anything - and Rose should actually know that since she was always someone who understood her, someone who was honest and helpful and offered comfort. Okay, maybe Rose still didn't consider this an offense that could go unpunished - she knew using her ability on someone out of spite was bad, but it had just happened.

"Do you think you deserve to get a spanking?"

"No," Maddie replied instantly, then started to fidget a little because Rose didn't look away and seemed to expect a little more, and so Maddie said, "I didn't do it on purpose, really. But Emmett dragged me back on purpose, so maybe you should smack him."

"I'll think about it," Rose said and when she saw Maddie nod her head, she really had to try her hardest not to smirk. "How do you feel?"

Maddie scrunched up her nose at that question. "I'm not sure ... okay, I guess."

"All right. How about you come to the living room with me and we have a talk with Emmett to make sure what happened today won't happen again?"

* * *

**Phew, I think I'll send them on a hunt in the next chapter ... well, _after_ they have talked about everything. **

**This chapter was never supposed to be a spanking-chapter, it's way too early for that and I'm sure neither Rose nor Emmett would be ready to do it.**

**Emmett could never spank anyone (well, at least not in a disciplinary way *wink*), and Rose knows that, of course! And I'm sure Rose would try different methods before even considering turning her sister over her knee.**

**Now … the premise of this story is that Rose should give Maddie a spanking, but maybe you know that I had my problems with that and it took me a long time to actually see it happen. Now, don't get me wrong, it will happen in this story, but the circumstances will be different, you'll see.**

**Thanks for reading and please review!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hello readers!**

**I apologise for the wait. I was concentrating on my other story and so I spend the time I had on that. I really hope it won't happen again!**

* * *

Emmett sat up when he heard the door to Maddie's room open. He had waited more or less patiently for the girls to come out of there, so they could finally try to put this mess behind them.

Rosalie emerged and walked toward him, and immediately Emmett swayed to the side in an attempt to look past her to see if Maddie would come out, too. If she wouldn't then it would mean that she was still mad at him, and he really didn't want her to be. Sometimes he just couldn't stop himself from acting like he had - it just happened.

He saw her following after Rosalie into the living room, now dressed in a hoodie and sweatpants, and the tension he had felt vanished and he breathed a sigh of relief. It was soothing to know that she was willing to talk and that she was covered up again.

When Rosalie reached him, he scooted over to offer both of them a seat on the couch, then looked up into his wife's face who gave him a little smile. That smile was meant to show him that she appreciated his thoughtfulness, as well as that the talk in Maddie's room had gone quite well.

Rose sat down next to him, but Maddie did not stop at the vacant seat on the couch – she chose the coffee table.

"Maddie," Rosalie chided mildly, having expected the girl to sit on an armchair or right next to her, but Maddie didn't react. She just watched Emmett with a strange look in her eyes; it was scrutinising and reluctant - a weird combination.

"Are you … okay?" she whispered, never taking her eyes off him. He looked fine, she noticed, his eyes were still of a golden colour and she couldn't find anything weird about him. No tension or pain, no nothing.

"Yeah, of course I am," he replied, making it sound as though her question was a little weird. "Are you?"

She didn't answer, just reached out and made to grab his hands. "Let me -"

"Maddie!" Rosalie gasped, but Emmett stopped her from panicking.

"She just wants to check!" he told his wife, then looked back at Maddie. "Don't you, Tiny?"

She gave him a nod and in her eyes he could see she wasn't angry anymore or would pose a threat to him in any way. No, she wouldn't harm him - not that he had ever feared that she would.

"Go ahead," he told her and without hesitation put his hands in hers.

The look in her eyes became more intense while she stared into his, and when Rose was just about to stop it as her nerves didn't allow her to watch this any longer, Maddie had already let go of Emmett's hands. "Okay," she said and ran a hand through her hair before placing it on her knee.

"What was that all about?" Rose asked, shooting Maddie a skeptical look.

"I just wanted to see if I damaged something." Or to be more precise: she wanted to see if she would be able to see any damage. Had that been the case, then she would have tried to fix it, of course. Plus this was new to her, and that's why she was kinda curious to find out more about that ability of hers.

"Awww, you cannot damage anything in there," Emmett said jokingly and knocked with his fist against the side of his head, making it sound hollow. Then he smiled broadly at her.

The corners of her mouth twitched but that was about it and suddenly the atmosphere changed again.

Emmett sighed, because he realised that now they had to talk about what happened and try to fix it instead of joking around.

"Maddie, I am sorry about the way I acted. Something must have snapped inside of me, I guess. You know I would never intentionally want to embarrass you or get you in trouble. And so I guess I deserved what you did ... kinda."

She looked up at him, and he could feel how incredibly uncomfortable the mention of that made her. "Em, I ... didn't know what I was doing," she admitted and bit her lip. "It somehow ... just happened."

He nodded his head to show her that he understood that her anger had driven her to force him to do something he ... wouldn't normally do. He had no clue that that wasn't what she had meant.

"I'm so sorry," they said in unison, then looked at each other in surprise.

"What are you sorry for?" Emmett asked and blinked his eyes at her like he didn't understand. The mere thought of her doing something wrong was preposterous. Well, okay, she did screw up from time to time, but right now he couldn't see anything she had willfully done wrong.

She frowned at his odd question. "My control slipped."

"It _slipped_?"

The way he stared at her made Maddie look away. She knew he could never be truly mad at her, but maybe he would keep his distance from now on? Maybe he thought she was dangerous, like a newborn ... "Uh-huh," she whispered and hung her head.

His eyes widened of their own accord and finally he realised how strongly his behaviour had affected her. He hadn't been fair with her, and then when they continued to argue, he had aggravated her to that extent that she lost control. Who was to blame for that? He couldn't find anyone at fault for this, except for himself. "Did you let it slip?"

That made her look back up. "Huh?"

"I mean, did you want to let it slip?" he asked.

The frown on her face became more prominent - Em once again didn't make any sense.

"No, of course not!" she replied, and there was a little note of desperation in her voice. Losing control over her instincts couldn't be worse than this. They probably thought she was too dangerous to go outside on her own now - she obviously had no self-control whatsoever. "Oh God, this is so embarrassing ...," she whispered.

"Ssh, calm down, Tiny. Nothing happened."

"_Nothing_ happened? I didn't know what I was doing! That is not _nothing_, Em!" she practically yelled, then buried her face in her hands. What a horrible day that was ...

Emmett reached out and patted her hair until she calmed again. Slowly she took her hands away from her face and looked at her siblings with big, sad eyes. "Will you tell Mom and Dad?" she asked carefully, hoping they would say No. This was embarrassing enough as it was, she really didn't want more people to know. Besides, Carlisle and Esme would probably be so disappointed - she could deal with them being angry with her, but not disappointed, no.

"If we notice that it becomes a problem, we will have to let them know. But I really doubt it'll happen again, so don't you worry," Rosalie said, trying to calm her nerves a little. She succeeded if only just a little, because Maddie still looked doubtful.

Rosalie let out a sigh, then added, "Maddie, they would want to know if something like this happens. Not to make you miserable, but to find a way to help you."

Emmett lightly touched her knee with the back of his hand to get her attention. "Mad, come on. It happened because I made you mad."

"That's even worse ... now I cannot even control my anger anymore."

Seeing that she was so miserable and was back to covering her face with her hands, Rosalie had to do something. "Maddie, you can control your anger, but it just got very difficult today because we all were struggling to keep the situation under control. I was trying to stay out of it because I thought it would be best to let you two speak out without having me interrupt, but that was obviously wrong of me and I am sorry."

Then she turned to Emmett and said, "Emmett, don't you have something to say to her?" Whatever happened this afternoon hadn't been Maddie's fault, but now she seemed like she thought it was. Plus she was doubting herself, and Rose just couldn't let that happen. She knew Emmett wanted to apologise to her, and maybe his words would show Maddie that they weren't innocent in this.

"Tiny, I am sorry for the way I acted. I guess, somehow I lost control as well. You can go outside on your own, and we knew exactly where you were, so I shouldn't have pulled you away from the lake."

She rubbed at her eye, then pulled her legs up to sit Indian style on the coffee table. With her head tilted to the side, she asked, "But why did you do it?"

"I don't like them and I don't like seeing you with them," he stated matter-of-factly.

Rosalie gave him a look that was bordering on glaring, but he had his eyes fixed on the girl in front of him.

"But why?"

"Tiny, you know why ... um, this is really hard for me. I will try and not interfere again, I promise I'll try my best but please be careful, okay?" he asked with a pained expression on his face.

"... okay," she replied, not knowing what she was supposed to make of that, but after a moment she thought there was only one thing he could have meant: she should be careful with her anger around humans or she would lose control again. Now that she was struggling, she had to be extra careful with humans.

So she nodded her head.

"So, we cool again?" Emmett queried, and before Maddie could answer, Rosalie spoke up.

"Shouldn't we resolve something first?"

Emmett scratched the back of his head before asking, "Like what?"

"I think you two wronged each other. Do you think that the way you two acted was all right?" Her voice was stricter now, probably trying to make them see the severity of the matter.

Oh shit. Both of them hung their heads before mumbling,"No."

Rose addressed Maddie first. "What do you think Emmett deserves for embarrassing you and dragging you away from the lake, Maddie?"

"Huh?" Her head shot up and she looked at Rose with eyes that shone with confusion.

Emmett did the same, but he remained silent. He got the feeling that he knew what Rose was trying to do here ... to make sure they wouldn't continue to 'hurt' each other, she would let them pick punishments for each other. If one was harsh, the other one would be, too - if one would be lax, the other one would also be like that. She had probably learned that from Carlisle. Of course both of them would be forgiving, she figured, and that would hopefully prevent similar situations in the future.

"Tell me. What do you think he deserves?"

Maddie's forehead wrinkled while she contemplated this. She gazed at the ground for a long moment before she lifted her head again and said, "Nothing."

"Nothing?" Rosalie queried and eyed her carefully.

Maddie shrugged her shoulders while giving her an apologetic look.

No one could be mad at Em for long and she couldn't be either. He was her big brother and he always helped her and cheered her up and spend time with her. The way he acted today had really pissed her off, but she realised that he hadn't tried to be mean. 'Mean' was a characteristic that just didn't fit him. And since she knew he didn't like seeing her with guys, she also knew that he was probably just trying to look out for her. Besides, she had been mean to him even though she hadn't noticed what she had been doing, so ... she had no right to chose a punishment for him now.

"All right, if that is how you feel," Rosalie commented, then turned her eyes on Emmett. "Emmett, what do you think she deserves for insulting you?"

"Aww Rose, that was my fault," he replied. "Besides, the poor thing got swatted! She didn't even deserve that, don't you think?"

Rose sat there with raised eyebrows and waited to see if that was his final answer of if there was anymore he wanted to say.

But he didn't say anything else, just turned to look at Maddie again and asked, "So, we're cool, Tiny?"

She nodded her head, then smiled at him.

"Oh, come here, you," he said and opened his arms. She jumped up and let him pull her onto his lap and hug her.

When she loosened the embrace, he looked her in the eye and said in a voice that wasn't as playful anymore, "But Mad, seriously, you need to take your phone with you, no matter where you go. You know Mom would have a fit if she found out that you're going somewhere without it and then we'd all be in trouble. Do you want that?"

She shook her head. "No."

"Glad to hear that. So from now on you'll take it with you just like you do at home, right?"

"Yes."

"How about we go on a hunt now? I'm sure it'll do us good." Now that everyone was obviously calm again and the peace in the house was restored, Rosalie thought it was time to get them all fed. Going on a hunt together was always fun, and the warm blood would help them relax and wash the stress of this afternoon away.

"Hell yeah!" Emmett replied. "There are tons of black bears around here just waiting to be drained, Mad!"

Maddie loved the idea of going hunting and getting some bear blood. Bear tasted so much better than deer, and she couldn't wait to feel it moistening her throat and filling her stomach. But she wanted to get changed first, so she darted from the room to find some ugly clothes she could stain.

"What do we do now?" Rose whispered while glancing in the direction Maddie had gone to make sure she would indeed be in her room and not overhear what they would be talking about.

"Hunt?" Emmett asked and looked at her weirdly.

She tzked. "No. About her losing control, I mean."

Emmett exhaled, then shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. Make sure it won't happen again."

"Aha."

"Going hunting is a good start, Rose, and it's probably all she needs and all we can do," he told her. "Besides, it was an accident, she said so herself."

At that moment Maddie came out of her room, wearing clothes that Alice must have chosen for her. A white, ruffled skirt and a light blue shirt with little white hearts all over it. Her phone that she had remembered to bring was poking out of her right sock and she had tied her hair up into a high ponytail so it wouldn't get all bloody.

"Don't laugh," she said when she came to a halt right in front of them. "I just wanna give Alice a vision of me wearing it to make her happy."

"Yeah, I bet that'll make her happy." Emmett grinned. Especially the second vision Alice would get, the one of Maddie hunting, would make her happy.

"Aw Maddie, don't ruin that outfit," Rose said while looking her up and down. "And you're gonna lose your phone like that."

"I wouldn't have to ruin it if you hadn't packed it," Maddie pointed out, then opened the middle drawer of the sideboard right next to her. With the Scotch tape she knew she would find in there, she taped her phone to her ankle, then smiled at Rose. "Ta-dah."

"Now she won't lose it anymore." Emmett smirked while fumbling around in his jeans pocket.

He held his keys up in the air after he had found them, then exclaimed, "All right, let's go!" And so they headed for the garage.

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	12. Chapter 12

After a twenty-minute drive they reached a forest area where Emmett swore they would find black bears.

It was true.

Maddie caught and drained a huge male bear in only a matter of minutes. She had been the first to smell and find it, and that's why she was so incredibly proud of herself. When it came to bears she always had to be quick because Emmett also liked the taste ... well okay, he_ loved_ it. He preferred grizzlies, but black bear was still close enough.

Em and Rose hadn't been mad at her for losing control and continuously reassured her that it was something that could happen. They told her she needed to feed properly this time, and after she had a good fill she would be as much in control as she had been before. Indeed, she felt good and normal and the blood helped immensely. It was so good ... there was nothing as good as bear. Snow fox was also very nice and she liked the taste of it, but they considered it to be more of a rare delicacy as it wasn't very often they came across that animal on one of their hunts. Bear was a lot easier to find and the taste and the amount of bear blood was always satisfying.

The only animal Maddie refused to drink from was moose ... it reminded her too much of the time right after she had been changed and she remembered the taste of its blood to be revolting - like drinking warmed-up puke or something from a slurry tanker. _Never again!_

She felt really full after she pushed the lifeless animal off her lap and stood up. To make sure her clothes would be destroyed beyond repair, she had fought with the angry animal while inflicting several wounds on its neck with her razor-sharp teeth, and in the end nearly all of the white hearts on the front of her shirt had turned red and her skirt was ripped. She was in a great mood now, but Rose didn't look too happy.

"Was that really necessary?" she asked and kicked the hint leg of the bear she had just drained out of the way so she could walk to where Maddie stood.

"You know it's more fun that way," Maddie pouted up at her.

"I'm talking about the clothes."

"Ugh … Alice just shouldn't have bought white clothes. Everyone knows blood leaves stains," Maddie replied. "Besides, this is too much white. With our skin tone we look horrible in white."

"I get that you don't like the skirt, but the T-shirt was nice."

Maddie was just about to tell Rose that she wasn't a retarded five-year-old, but Emmett suddenly appeared at Rose's side. He had been hunting a bit farther away in hopes of finding bigger bears. He had let Maddie have the biggest one they had found together as he knew she liked black bear - and he wanted to make sure she would get a sense of achievement and a lot of blood to strengthen her self-control.

"Shall we head back home?"

They nodded their heads in response, but Emmett fixed his eyes on Maddie. "Are you sure you had enough? You can have another one if you want."

"No, I'm fine. That one had more than enough blood for me, I feel bloated," she replied and patted her stomach, but he suddenly laughed.

"You look like you spilled half of it."

She lifted the neck of her shirt to her mouth and sucked a little blood from it, then grinned. "That's for the drive back."

Full, satisfied and happy they headed back to the Jeep where they cleaned up a little. And after Rose had put a towel onto Maddie's seat and made her wear a sweatshirt over her dirty clothes, they could drive back to the house.

Emmett parked the car in the garage so they could get out without having people detect any traitorous bloodstains on their clothes and skin and when the garage door was closed, they hopped from the vehicle.

The first thing Maddie did was take a shower. Even though she liked the smell of blood on her, she looked like someone had tried to slaughter her and Rosalie wouldn't let her touch anything or sit down on the couch.

It was nice to feel the water run down her body and wash away blood that had already been drying and made her skin feel a little itchy. When she emerged from the bathroom in clean clothes, her bright grin let her siblings know that the drama hours ago had been forgiven and forgotten - the hunt had been an excellent idea.

Maddie slumped down on the couch next to Rose and grabbed the remote to change the channel – one of her favourite TV shows was about to start.

"Still watching that? Mad, you know every episode by now," Emmett remarked and shifted in his seat to get a better view of the TV.

"Hey, don't hate Kim Possible, she's kick-ass and awesome," Maddie retorted with a giggle and poked her tongue out at Emmett before settling back on the couch with a satisfied sigh. She was glad she could feel so at ease right now - it was a huge difference to before.

A bleeping sound distracted them from the show, and Rosalie said, "That's yours, Maddie. Where is it?"

"Bathroom," Maddie replied while stretching out on the couch before begrudgingly getting up and walking toward her little bathroom, dragging her feet.

"_Oh, hi!_" Emmett and Rose could hear her say. "_... good!_"

"Who is that?" Emmett whispered while looking questioningly at his wife.

"Maybe it's Esme, I don't know," she replied immediately.

Maddie came running back into the living room then jumped right onto the couch and landed next to Rose. She lay down, the phone pressed to her ear. "It was _huge_!" she prattled. "Four times bigger than Em!"

The reply from the other end was fuzzy to them, but Maddie was already speaking again. "If you come here that late, you have to take what we leave over, Daddy." She giggled, and Rose reached out and stroked her sister's hair.

Maddie's face scrunched up for a moment while she listened to Carlisle, then she said, "Uh-huh … uh-huh … maybe … yeah, I know." It went on for a few more minutes until Maddie gave Rose the phone and when she got it back after a while she said good bye and hung up.

"Hey! Why didn't he want to talk to me?" Emmett immediately complained.

"His beeper went off," Maddie explained while lying down on the couch and letting her legs dangle from the armrest. "He'll call again tomorrow, Em."

Maddie stretched out after they had watched another episode in comfortable silence, and at that moment her phone beeped. She sat up immediately and grabbed it, then flipped it open to read the message she had just received. Snapping it shut again, she stood up from the couch and told her siblings, "I'm going swimming." and made to walk to her room.

"Cool, I'm coming with you!" Emmett called and stood up with a huge grin on his face.

But he stopped grinning when Maddie turned around and shook her head. "No, I'm going with others. That's all right, isn't it?" she asked and looked between Rose and Emmett with a little smirk on her lips.

"Of course it is, right, Emmett?" Rosalie asked in her sweetest voice while giving him a look that dared him to disagree.

"Sure ... just thought we could go swimming together," he replied and looked at the floor.

"Emmy, we can go swimming tomorrow. But I had planned on going swimming with them today and I wanna do that now," she told him, then walked on and into her room.

"Emmett, you said you would try," Rosalie said and looked at him until he lifted his head and met her gaze. She took one of his hands in hers and gave it a gently squeeze before pulling at it to make him sit down next to her.

"Yes, I will."

Rosalie smiled – he was really going to try and she was so happy to hear that. "Look, it's already dark outside. They will swim for ten minutes and that's it."

He nodded his head, but didn't look awfully convinced. "Sure, that's okay, I guess."

Giving him a little smile, Rose said, "You two can go swimming tomorrow, she already said so."

"Yeah."

"Oh Emmy, humans don't see well in the dark, no need to worry."

"Yeah ...," he replied but then got up and left the room, heading in the direction of Maddie's room.

"Emmett, what -" Rosalie started to say, but Emmett just held one hand up to stop her from saying anything.

He walked on, then came to a halt in front of Maddie's closed room door and knocked.

"I'm getting changed!" Maddie called to make sure that whoever it was wouldn't enter.

"Can ... can you do me a favour?" Emmett asked and put his ear against the door to listen for her answer.

He heard her stop moving inside her room, then she said, "Sure, what kind of a favour?"

"Could you please ... not wear a bikini?"

He heard her let out a groan at his request, but weirdly enough it turned into a giggle. "I won't wear a bikini," she replied and Emmett let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, Tiny!" He turned around and went back into the living room, letting himself fall onto the couch right next to Rose.

"What did you do?" she asked and looked him in the eye when he lay down and rested his head in her lap.

"Just needed to ask her something."

She frowned at him while letting her fingers run through his thick, dark locks. "Just let her have fun, all right?"

"Of course!" he replied and smiled up at her.

At that moment Maddie's door opened and she skipped out of her room, wearing the same clothes she had before and a towel was draped over her shoulder.

"I don't know when I'll be back, but I'm down there at the lake," she told them while walking through the living room and in the direction of the front door, all the while holding her phone high in the air.

"Have fun!" Rosalie called and Emmett just waved his hand at Maddie.

They could hear the door open and close again and then Maddie was out of the house.

"What do you want to do now, hm?" Rose asked and smirked at her husband. They had the house all to themselves now ...

He gave a loud, barking laugh, then suddenly silenced and glanced at her with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "What would you suggest, babe?"

"I still didn't get the chance to thank you for the flowers ...," she trailed off when he sat up and attacked her lips with his own. So they were picking up exactly where they left off a few hours ago.

They enjoyed their time together and were looking forward to their preferred method of stress relief when Rosalie's phone rang.

She made to pull away and reach for it as it was lying on the coffee table, but Emmett kept her from moving by hugging her even tighter. "Let it ring," he mumbled against her lips and so they continued to only focus on each other and their kiss instead of the annoying ringing.

It stopped after what seemed like a minute and they were just about to head upstairs when Emmett's phone started ringing.

"Answer the phone, Emmett. Maybe it's important," Rose said and stopped next to the stairs, her hands on his chest to keep him from kissing her and ignoring the phone. Emmett groaned in response, but then let go of his wife and fumbled around in his jeans pocket until he found his phone and pulled it out, then rolled his eyes when he say the caller-ID.

"Alice, this isn't the best time, you know," he said into the phone and then listened to what his little sister had to say to him.

"_Are you insane?_" she screeched.

He pulled the phone quickly away from his ear and rubbed at it before hesitantly holding it somewhere near his mouth and asked, "What?"

"_Why do you allow Maddie to go skinny-dipping, huh? Why would you do that?_"

He started laughing, relieved that this was just a little misunderstanding. _Alice and her visions …_ "She was wearing clothes, she wasn't skinny-dipping earlier."

"_I'm not talking about earlier, Emmett! Is she or isn't she at the lake right now?_"

"Yes, she -" and then realisation hit. Emmett gasped and the phone slipped from his fingers, hitting the floor with a loud bang. He was at the window in less than a second, his eyes wide with panic.

Glancing out, he saw Maddie standing at the lake, kicking her shoes off and then pulling her shorts down. Her T-shirt was next and after she had taken it off, he saw that she was wearing a bikini. _She said she wouldn't wear one, aw man!_

Afraid that Alice's vision might come true any second now, he stormed over to the front door and yanked it open. With two large steps he was standing in the middle of their porch, ready to make his way down to the lake, when he suddenly stopped and took a deep breath. Maybe Alice was wrong ... and he didn't want to make Maddie mad again by pulling her away from the lake for no apparent reason. No, he needed to keep his calm, he made that promise after all.

He was just about to turn around and go inside again because if he would watch her just a moment longer he would run the risk of walking over there and retrieving her just like he had done hours ago.

But then it happened.

He felt his jaw drop as he watched Maddie hook her thumbs into the waistband of her bikini bottoms and begin to push them down.

His eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

She, his dear little sister, stood with her back to him not sensing his presence and was basically mooning him.

He couldn't even gasp in shock.

His _baby sister_ stood there _baring her behind for all the world to see!_ – now that was definitely something he would have never expected her to do.

With their smooth, white skin they were almost glowing in the dark and that made the whole situation even worse for Emmett as he stared at her white porcelain butt in sheer disbelief.

He couldn't get a single word out but luckily he didn't need to, because Rosalie appeared at his side almost instantly and yelled, "_Madeline!_"

The girl turned her head to look at them over her shoulder and immediately froze, looking like a deer caught in headlights. She let out a silent gasp, then quickly pulled the bikini bottoms back over her behind when she realised what exactly they were able to see. She grabbed her T-shirt from the ground and put it back on, then slipped into her sneakers and reached down for her shorts and towel, then walked back to the house and her two siblings - one looking at her in shock and disbelief, the other one glaring.

She reached them quickly and the naked humans in the lake were completely forgotten.

Rose had her hands on her hips when Maddie walked up the stairs and she snapped, "What was that all about? _Are you out of your mind?!_"

Maddie raised one eyebrow, then said the only thing she could think of to make this awkward situation seem like it was planned. "You failed." And then she stepped past them into the house, leaving them standing on the porch with their mouths agape.

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	13. Chapter 13

**Hello, readers!  
**

**I hurried to make sure I could update today! Why? ****Because today is a special day :-) **

**Happy birthday, Jamie! I hope you have/had a great day!**

**And I hope you like this chapter! Well, I hope all of you like it!  
**

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"Failed? We failed? What is that supposed to mean?" Rosalie asked as soon as she had stepped over the threshold. She didn't get an answer and as she looked around she saw that her sister had already reached the living room.

Maddie was on her way to her room and even though she had heard Rose talk to her and felt her staring at her, she wondered if she could maybe just ignore her.

"Stop right there!"

Okay … apparently she couldn't.

"Huh?" Maddie asked innocently and turned around to face her sister.

"What were you talking about, Maddie?" Rose queried and came to a halt in front of her.

Letting out a sigh, Maddie prepared herself to 'explain'. She wasn't being honest but it would work, she was pretty sure about that. "Well, I wanted to test you. You failed the test."

That explanation wasn't very helpful to Rose as Maddie could see her forehead crease, and then she looked at her with a confused facial expression. "Test us?"

"Yup."

Rosalie crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes. "By getting naked in front of a bunch of male humans you were only … testing us."

"It worked, didn't it? But unfortunately you failed," Maddie replied and shrugged her shoulders like she had already expected that outcome and was still a little sad about it.

Rose put a hand on her forehead and exhaled audibly. "I'm having a little trouble believing you."

"Why?" Maddie asked and tilted her head to the side while watching her sister narrow her eyes once more.

"Why? Because that is a little extreme, isn't it? You were getting _naked_, do you even realise that?"

"No, only my butt," Maddie argued and was sure she had a valid point here.

"And how far would you have gone in order to_ test_ us? Would you have taken off all your clothes?"

"I didn't need to go any further, because I knew you would be watching me."

Clenching her jaw for a brief moment to keep her growing frustration in check, Rosalie said after clearing her throat, "What if we wouldn't have stopped you? Would you have gone swimming with them? Completely naked?"

Maddie made a face. "Eww, no."

"No?" Emmett asked, finally having found his voice and his ability to walk. He closed the front door and walked into the living room with quick steps, halting right next to his wife and looking at his sister like he couldn't quite believe what she just said. She had been in the process of completely undressing herself, at least that's what it had looked like, and that's why her answer didn't make much sense to him.

"No," Maddie told him, "there are fish in the water."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Rosalie asked, exasperated with her sister conjuring up excuses.

Maddie pointed at her lower body and said, "I don't want them to swim up there and get stuck."

Rose shook her head and blinked her eyes, trying to understand just what the heck the girl was talking about. "Get stuck where?"

"Inside of me."

"_What?!_" Emmett's eyes bulged and his voice just got unnaturally high.

"You have never heard of vampire fish, now do you? It's a type of catfish that have some kind of hooks at the head. And then they swim into the gills of bigger fish and do what parasites do ... but they aren't very bright and sometimes mistake people for fish ... and then they get stuck in your private parts."

They just looked at her weirdly.

"Aw, come on! You have never heard of vampire fish? _Seriously?!_ They are also called toothpick fish!" She sounded incredulous that her siblings had never heard of them.

Rose and Em still didn't say anything.

"They live in the Amazon!" _Are they stupid?_

"That," Rosalie said and pointed at the lake through the window, "is not the Amazon."

_Duh!_ Maddie was aware of that, but she needed to keep on talking about these fish so they would believe that she was indeed scared of these things and therefore would never even think about going nude swimming. "Well, what if someone took them from there and put them into the lake? You never know, people are crazy!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air like she couldn't believe just _how_ crazy humans were.

"Maddie, there are no _vampire fish_ in this lake," Rosalie stated matter-of-factly and gave her sister a scrutinising look.

"How do you know?"

"I just do," she said. There wasn't even the slightest trace of humour in her voice and she really seemed to be getting a little annoyed with her.

"You cannot be sure, no one can be sure!"

Rose huffed. "There are no such things in this lake!"

"I don't think it would be wise to go skinny-dipping in a lake with these fish," Maddie said and shook her head while scrunching up her nose.

"You won't find a single vampire fish in this lake!" Yep, Rose was losing her patience.

"So … you want me to go swimming with no clothes on? In _there_?" And now Maddie did her best to look a little frightened ... she was actually enjoying herself quite a bit.

"What?! No!" Emmett called, sounding like he was beginning to panic, then he turned to look at his wife. "_Rosalie!_"

Maddie continued like she hadn't heard Emmett speak or hadn't noticed Rosalie's shocked expression. "But I don't want to, eww!" she whined and shuddered visibly. "And you cannot make me!"

"You don't have to! Just wear whatever you want!" Emmett said quickly and glanced back and forth between his wife and sister.

"Maddie, you -" "I hope we never go to the Amazon!" Maddie interrupted Rose, still whining and positively grossed out.

Pinching the bridge of her nose with her thumb and index finger, Rosalie took a deep breath before saying, "Maybe you should go to your room and ... read a book for a while."

Maddie looked up at Rose with large eyes. "Can I play Super Mario?"

"Sure, whatever you want," she replied with a wave of her hand.

Maddie smiled broadly at her siblings, then turned around and went to her room.

They heard her room door click shut, and Rose could hear Emmett releasing a breath.

"Did she just ... accuse me of trying to make her go skinny-dipping?" Rose asked Emmett while blinking her eyes in disbelief.

He just stared at her and slowly shrugged his shoulders.

* * *

The next day was beautiful again.

The day before was forgotten it seemed, and they sat around and watched TV, played Xbox and Emmett and Maddie tried to beat the crap out of each other with feather-filled pillows. That fun didn't last long because it didn't hurt so no one surrendered apart from the pillows ... and the vacuum cleaner ... and Rose. But she couldn't be mad at them, because it happened on a regular basis that things fell prey to what they considered to be huge fun.

In the evening Maddie got a text from Chris. He asked if she wanted to come over tonight, and she immediately agreed. They sent each other a few messages before Maddie left her room to let her siblings know she wouldn't be home that night.

"I go to Chris' house tonight to play some pool," Maddie said casually after shoving her phone back into her pocket and slumping down into an armchair in the living room.

"Sure, have fun," Rosalie said and gave her a little smile before continuing to watch the news.

"When will you be back?" Emmett asked and glanced at her.

"Dunno, I'll be there around nine-ish, so ...," she said and shrugged her shoulders.

"Be back before twelve, kay?"

"What? No, twelve is way too early," Maddie replied while leaning back in the armchair.

"Fine, you may stay longer but call me when you wanna leave and I'll come and pick you up," Emmett told her and saw out of the corner of his eye that Rose nodded her head.

Maddie snorted. "Pick me up? It isn't far and I'm sure I can find my way back without your help, Em."

"Maddie, we have to keep up appearances. You know you have a way earlier curfew at home," Rosalie threw in and took her eyes off the screen for a brief moment to look at her.

"But Mom and Dad aren't here and I don't have school."

Rose sighed. "Twelve o'clock or call us." She found Emmett's idea great. Maddie could stay longer, she just needed to give him a call so he would be able to walk her home.

"Nooo," Maddie moaned, then pushed her bottom lip out to hopefully look completely pitiful.

"Mad, we are responsible for you. You don't just get yourself in trouble if you don't listen to what we tell you," Emmett pointed out to make her see reason. Esme and Carlisle would flip if something bad happened and they would find out that they could have avoided it - but didn't. No, thanks ... and Maddie wouldn't want them to get in trouble, right?

"We want to let you go out and have fun, but you need to meet us half way," Rosalie added in a soft voice to back him up. They didn't want to be spoilsports, but it wasn't possible to let her spend half the night somewhere else.

"But come on ... if this is just for appearance's sake then you should know that his parents aren't even home." Only parents would ask about her curfew, people her age would find it awesome if she could stay outside as long as she wanted - they wouldn't find it weird.

Rosalie's eyebrows shot up while she asked, "Is that supposed to change our minds?"

"Twelve o'clock or call us, Mad," Emmett said again. He wasn't exactly thrilled that there wouldn't be any supervision, but he wanted to learn to keep his cool. There had to be some trick, and he was trying to figure it out. Maybe accepting that it might do her good to meet people was the trick. He just needed to be cool with that - let her see people for a limited amount of time. He could do that ... maybe.

"I don't want to."

"Well, stay home, then you don't need to." Emmett smirked at her, making her poke out her tongue at him.

"No."

Rosalie let out a sigh. "Please, Maddie, don't be difficult." The day had been great so far and it would be awesome if it could stay that way.

"Fine, I'll be back by twelve. I don't want you to pick me up ... I'm not a baby."

"Okay," Emmett said and nodded his head, then leaned back in his armchair and crossed his legs.

They continued to watch the news, and all the while Maddie gave her sister little sideways glances and chewed her lower lip.

When Rosalie couldn't ignore it any longer, she asked, "Is there anything you would like to say?"

Maddie nodded her head. "I think I should be allowed to decide for myself when I want to come back. I'm eighteen."

Rose really had to fight the urge to sigh. Maddie still didn't get the concept of aging, obviously - maybe she should sit down with her and try to explain it once more.

Emmett shifted in his seat, then put his elbows on his knees and folded his hands while looking at her. "You may stay out longer than twelve o'clock, but call us when you want me to come pick you up."

She groaned in annoyance. "Emmy ... come on, be fair."

"That is fair, Mad."

With a pout on her face, Maddie crossed her arms over her chest and just looked at him with puppy-dog eyes - hoping that would make him give in. But even before that could work, Rosalie had to say something to ruin that plan.

"If you think we are being unfair you may call Esme and ask her," Rosalie offered while watching her little sister huff and turn away. "Go ahead, call her."

Nope, Maddie wouldn't do that ... that would be completely stupid.

"I need to get ready," Maddie said after a few more moments of sulking that basically got her nowhere. She didn't know why she was suddenly so obstinate, but she somehow felt like she was right in demanding a later curfew ... or to be more precise: to demand to have no curfew at all. Yesterday had been so stupid because Rose and Emmett had basically made the decision to make it stupid for her ... so maybe she should be the one to make the decisions now.

She left the room and after she had closed her room door, she threw herself onto her bed and let out a puff of air. Why would she have to be at home at twelve o'clock? She didn't sleep, so what was a curfew supposed to achieve? And the argument of having to keep up appearances didn't make any sense to her ... the others wouldn't question her if she stayed there as long as she liked, and other people around here wouldn't notice. Besides, it was something like a party as Chris' brother had friends from college over ... Maddie, of course, hadn't mentioned that because she thought it wasn't very important just how exactly she was going to spend the night. But a party sounded nice and she didn't want to leave so early or have someone pick her up, boo.

After lying around on her bed for a while, trying to figure out how she could get her way, she stood up and opened her closet.

Maybe she should just go there and stay as long as she liked ... and then go home without calling Emmett. Well, there was nothing he could do if she suddenly entered the house at two am without having called him to come pick her up... but she might get herself in trouble with Rose, hm.

But then she hung her head, because Alice might also pose a problem here. She would tell Rose and Emmett that she didn't plan on calling them, and then they would both show up to get her even before twelve o'clock, she knew it.

Choosing a pair of jeans, Maddie changed into them and threw her sweats onto her bed. She put on a dark T-shirt she liked and applied a little make-up before grabbing her phone off the bed. Then she opened the door and stepped into the hallway.

When she came into the living room, she saw that only Emmett was sitting there, watching some show he liked.

"Where's Rose?"

"She went upstairs to read," he told her and switched the TV off, then looked up at her with a smile as she approached him.

Unfortunately that little piece of information he had just given her suddenly made her tense up as an idea popped into her mind. It was a fortunate coincidence that she would meet Emmett alone in this room with Rosalie being upstairs and occupied ...

She ignored the voice in her head that was yelling at her to not do it, to do anything but that, but with a shake of her head she managed to abandon any negative thoughts from her mind and only a wicked determination remained.

She sat down next to her brother and in a fraction of a second she had grabbed his hand that had been resting on his knee. Then - without allowing any doubts to stop her or think it over - she pushed her way into his mind, forcing him to obey her every command.

"Emmett, you will mute your phone, as well as Rosalie's, because you two don't want to be bothered. Then you will go upstairs and ask her to take a bath with you. Feel free to spend a few hours in the jacuzzi, do whatever you like, as long as Rosalie doesn't walk downstairs. At exactly five to twelve you will tell her that she should wait as you have a surprise for her, and then you walk downstairs and ... grab one of these roses. You take it back upstairs and give it to her, then tell her that you just saw me come back home, greet you and then I went to my room where I will be staying until the next morning because I want to ... read. Then you and Rose may spend the night as you please."

After the third sentence Maddie had started to feel guilty so she started to speak faster. This was very wrong ... especially because Emmett would remember in a few weeks that she had done this to him. But she figured that he would see that nothing bad had happened and she didn't do any harm. She had just wanted to spend a night the way she wanted to ... and let him have a wonderful night with Rose.

Oh God, she had never done this to him. Or Rosalie for that matter. It was horrible to know that she had just betrayed Emmett's trust like that and forced him to do whatever she wanted.

But she didn't hurt him and enabled her two siblings to spend a few hours like they would want. Emmett would understand ... he would hopefully understand. Well, he would _maybe_ understand.

Before she could start to feel really bad and kick herself for the mistake she just made, she let go of Emmett's hand and stood up.

A few moments passed until he started to blink his eyes, then he focussed on her standing before him.

"I've left something in my room," Maddie mumbled and turned around to leave the living room. After opening the window in her room to make sure she would be able to climb back inside, she shut the door with a soft click and made her way back into the living room.

When she reached Emmett sitting on the couch, she saw him putting Rosalie's phone back onto the coffee table, and then he stood up.

"I'll go upstairs now, Tiny, I feel like taking a bath," he said to her while stretching out. "See you later, and have fun!"

She swallowed heavily. "Thanks, I'm sure I'll have fun."

She watched him hurry up the stairs, driven by excitement about his plan to have a bath with Rose, and she walked over to the sideboard and pressed a button on the house telephone to switch it off.

There was no turning back now ... and maybe it wasn't that bad what she had just done. Emmett was so relaxed and easy-going, he would surely understand that sometimes it was necessary to break the rules - especially when they didn't even make sense. Curfew, pah! Carlisle and Esme would never find out, _heck_, not even Rose would find out! This was between her and Em - and he would surely understand and forgive her ...

She put on her sneakers that were standing on the little mat next to the front door, and then she stepped onto the porch and closed the door behind her.

* * *

**Poor Emmy ... but he seems quite happy right now, doesn't he?**

**Please review and tell me what you think ;-)  
**


	14. Chapter 14

"That was amazing, Rose," Emmett moaned and leaned back, placing his arms on the rim of the jacuzzi. The water had the perfect temperature and he couldn't get enough of the bubbly feeling on his skin while he was enjoying the night with his wife. Luckily vampires could not tire ...

She smirked at him while pinning a few strands of her hair back up into the loose bun that was supposed to keep her hair from getting wet while they were spending time in this awesome hot tub. "I know."

As Emmett watched her work on her sweetly scented, golden hair, he suddenly remembered something and darted a quick glance at his watch. "I'll be right back," he said and stood up, then climbed out of the water and wrapped a soft towel around his hips.

"Where are you going?" Rosalie asked and glanced at him, her head resting on her folded arms on the rim of the tub and her full, red lips formed into an adorable pout.

"I have a surprise for you," he said, grinning at her. "Wait here."

He left the room and skipped down the stairs like a lovestruck fool, then snatched a red rose from the vase standing on the coffee table in the living room. He lifted it up and took in the elusive scent, then nodded to himself in utter satisfaction. Yep, this rose was perfect for his Rose.

It took him mere seconds and he was back upstairs, coming to a halt in the middle of the bathroom.

"This is for you, darling," he said and winked at her, then revealed the single rose he had kept hidden behind his back.

"Okay ...," she said with a frown, then chuckled. "You gave me roses yesterday, but thank you, baby."

He grinned, then let his towel fall to the floor and climbed back into the jacuzzi to join his wife.

"Oh," he mumbled while covering the side of her neck with passionate kisses, "Maddie just came back home."

Rose suddenly pulled away and frowned at him. "She did? I didn't hear the front door open. Did you speak to her?"

"I saw her come back home," he told her and pulled her back against him. "She greeted me and then went to her room."

Rose pushed him back gently to look him in the eye. "Well, what did she say? Did she have fun?"

He sighed. "I don't know, she only greeted me." Then he continued to kiss down her neck.

"Well, maybe I should go downstairs and see if she wants to talk," Rose mused – feeling torn between spending time with her obviously still needy husband or her little sister who had just spend a few hours with humans and maybe would like to have someone to talk to now. That she just greeted Em without telling him how it had been seemed weird - she usually couldn't stop talking when she was happy or excited.

"She went to her room to read and she'll stay in there until the next morning," he replied to hopefully make her stay in the tub with him.

Rose pushed him back once more and shook her head a little as something didn't make sense to her. "Emmy ... you said she only greeted you. How would you know what she's doing in her room and how long she'll be staying in there?"

He stared blankly at her and started stammering - something must confuse him. "Sh-she's reading ... until the morning."

Then it dawned on her.

"Aww, baby," Rosalie laughed and placed a hand on his cheek. "Maybe she's sad about something, I go check on her." Poor Emmy … maybe Maddie had seemed sad or the like and it had made him feel uneasy. No problem - she would surely be able to find out what was wrong and help her.

"But-," he started to say as she stood up and climbed over the rim of the jacuzzi, then reached for a towel to wrap around her body.

"Hm?" she asked innocently and batted her eyelashes at him, then cracked up when he became speechless.

"I'll be back soon, don't worry!" she said and covered herself, then turned around and left the room. Without wasting any time, she pulled some clothes from the closet in her and Emmett's room and threw her towel onto the bed.

Properly dressed in a tanktop and light shorts, Rosalie descended the stairs and headed for Maddie's room. She knocked against the wooden door, because it was closed and she didn't want to just barge in. But no matter how long she waited, she wasn't allowed inside. There was no movement or breathing coming from the other side of the door, only a light breeze brushing against her bare feet from underneath the door.

She wrapped her fingers around the door handle and pushed down to open the door while knocking again and calling her sister's name, but then she saw that Maddie wasn't in her room. The window was open and in came a stream of air smelling of lake water and wet earth, and that was the only unusual thing Rose could detect.

Maddie wasn't here ... and even though the room smelled of her, it was apparent that she hadn't been here in hours.

Frowning, Rosalie turned around and walked back into the living room to call for her husband.

He came down the stairs a moment later, a towel wrapped around his hips, and he looked at her with a quizzical expression on his face. "Down here?" he asked incredulously. "No way, she might hear us!"

Rose groaned. "Emmett, that's not why I called you to come downstairs. I would like to know where Maddie is."

"In her room, reading," he replied like it was a known fact.

"She is not in there. She isn't even home," Rose told him and saw how a frown started to appear on his forehead.

"No, no, no," he said, "I know that she is in her room. She greeted me, and then she went to her room to read."

"Go look for yourself. She hasn't been home in hours. How can you have possibly seen her, huh? How?"

He opened and closed his mouth, but no sound came out. Then he just headed in the direction of the girl's room, picking up his pace the closer he got to the room.

"That can't be!" he shouted as he emerged a second later, his eyes wide with confusion and a hint of panic in his voice. "I _saw_ her, Rose!"

Now that was odd. Really odd. He pleaded that he had seen her, but that couldn't be.

"Maybe ... she left through the window? It's open ...," she speculated. Maybe she had been wrong about the scent ... maybe the fresh air coming in through the window had washed her scent away … it seemed unlikely, but_ maybe_ if she had only stayed for a moment, then her scent might have thinned out enough to make it seem like she hadn't been home at all. They were no trackers, after all. Ugh, too many maybes.

Emmett sat down on the couch and pressed his palms against his temples like his head was hurting, and his eyes were unable to focus properly on anything. "She's reading until the morning ... but she's not in there ... I don't understand." Then he looked up at his wife. "I don't understand, Rose, this can't be. I saw her come home and she greeted me."

"Come on, we'll go looking for her. Put on some clothes," she told him, rubbing his shoulder a little to calm him. He seemed so confused that it confused her ... and a strong sense of worry made itself known.

"Yeah ... yeah, but it doesn't make sense," he whispered, more to himself than to her.

"I'll check the other rooms, you just go get dressed, Em," she said and breathed a silent sigh of relief as he got up and walked upstairs to get changed.

She was almost certain that Maddie wasn't here, that she wasn't in this house with them. Her scent was too faint in the foyer and the living room and there wasn't a trail heading for her room. In her room the scent was already thinned out, but it also was 'old'. She definitely hadn't been here in the last few minutes, she would know if she had been. No, something wasn't right here … and even though she already knew it would be in vain, she checked all the rooms downstairs, including the garage, but couldn't find her.

While Rose stood in the living room, one hand pressed against her forehead while the other one rested on her hip, Emmett suddenly bolted down the stairs, dressed in jeans and a hoodie.

"So? Did you find her?" he asked when he came to a halt about two feet from her.

"No, Emmett. She's not here," Rose answered and shook her head.

"I don't understand ... I _saw_ her, Rose, I _saw_ her," he told her almost pleadingly, begging her to believe him.

"Let's go search for her. Don't worry, baby," she replied softly and hooked her arm around his elbow. Right now she felt like she was the strong one here - Emmett had never been at a loss of what to do like he was now and it kinda caught her off guard, but she couldn't allow it to show as Emmett seemed to desperately need her support.

Before they could leave the room and head outside, Rosalie noticed her phone lying on the coffee table. She picked it up and decided to give Maddie a call to find out where she was and what had happened. It was the quickest and easiest way to reach her, and she wondered why she hadn't thought of it before.

What startled her as she flipped it open, was that her phone was muted. She hadn't done that - she barely ever did that. Deciding that she could find out at a later time, she speed-dialed Maddie's number and held the phone to her ear, waiting for the ringing on the other end.

Perfect.

Maddie had switched her phone off, that little brat. They had succeeded in making it very clear to her to always have it with her while they were staying here at the lake … and she did so, only that she had switched it off now.

"Great, she has switched it off," she almost growled when Emmett looked at her expectantly and waited for her to tell him what's going on.

"Are you sure? Maybe she muted it."

And that was the key word.

Rose looked at him, giving him a suspicious look, then asked, "Muted it? Why do you think she would mute it, Emmett?"

"Because I muted our phones." He shrugged.

"_You_ did that? Why, Emmett? Why would you do that?"

"So we have more privacy and nobody gets to disturb us," he explained, shrugging his shoulders because it made sense to him.

"Em, that doesn't make sense. You have never done that before - you know we need to be reachable_ at all times_! What if Maddie had called because she needed help? We wouldn't have noticed!"

"Oh shit," he uttered and stared right back at her as realisation hit. Muting the phones was really stupid because he knew they had to be reachable ... so why had he done it and disregarded that rule? Now it didn't really make that much sense anymore and he racked his brain for a plausible explanation, but failed to come up with anything except for that he had wanted to have privacy. "We still have the house phone!" _Phew._

Rose nodded, then went over to the sideboard to check the phone for any missed calls.

"Em," she said and groaned. "Did you switch it off?"

"What? No!"

"Okay, something's really wrong here …"

While shaking her head, Rose pressed the button on the phone to turn it on - and at that moment it rang.

It was so unexpected that she nearly dropped it, but after taking a breath, she accepted the call and held the phone to her ear.

"_Took you long enough_," Alice said in a pissy tone of voice.

"Alice, I didn't know that the phones were switched off, I'm sorry," she replied in the same tone her sister had used to 'greet' her.

_"Just make sure it doesn't happen again. I have no clue how I'm supposed to reach you, you know. It's not like you are going to pick up your phone when it's muted._"

"I wasn't planning on letting it happen again. Where's Maddie?"

_"Well, you won't find her at the house of these humans, so don't bother walking over there."_

"Why?"

_ "Because she's not there._"

"Where is she?"

_"I don't know. Whatever they're doing, they are not following a certain plan, that much is clear,_" Alice replied grumpily. She hated it when people couldn't make up their minds and she was bombarded with a million different visons every few seconds - and she had no clue which one would be 'the one'.

"So you don't know when she'll be back either?"

"_Just rub it in, Rose. Just rub it in,_" Alice snapped at her.

"I'm not trying to insult your gift, Alice! We just need to find out where she is or when she'll be back!" Rose snapped back.

"Rosie, shh," Emmett whispered in an attempt to calm her a little.

"_Well, I can't tell you, because I. don't. know. What I _do_ know is that she is obviously having a blast._"

Did Alice just grit her teeth?

"So she is well?" That was actually good news. Rose was relieved as she exhaled slowly, feeling the worry and anxiety leave her body.

"_Yes._"

"I'm glad. Thank you, Alice," Rose said and gave Emmett a little smile to let him know that everything's okay. Well, more or less ...

"Alice? Can you tell me if she came home a few minutes ago? Emmett says he saw her, but I'm just not sure if -"

"Oh," Alice replied and it sounded like she was smirking now. "I'm sure Maddie will be more than happy to explain when she gets back."

Rose huffed "At least you are having fun ... Just leave us in the dark about-"

"I don't want to spoil that surprise ... like Maddie spoilt Jasper's surprise for me. I can't think straight and give my husband my undivided attention while she is out and about doing whatever she wants on this great day, almost giving me a migraine. But now that I have finally reached you, I can try and block these visions."

"Okay ..."

"_I can't believe that she would ... oh, nevermind. That's your problem now, not mine._"

"Great, thanks."

"You don't have to do anything, Rose. Keep that in mind. Bye!" and with that, Alice hung up.

Rose took the phone away from her ear and just stared at it in disbelief. In a way Alice had helped, but somehow she also hadn't. _What the heck is going on here?_

All of a sudden she remembered something and her jaw clenched. Without briefing Emmett about the talk she just had with Alice or what she was about to do now, she stalked from the room and right into Maddie's.

She came to a stop in front of the window and while taking a deep breath to inhale the fresh air coming from outside, she let her eyes roam over the area for a moment in search of her sister. She couldn't see her anywhere and so she shut the window forcefully before she left the room again.

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**Hm, I think someone overlooked the fact that Rose might go downstairs ... ;-)**

**Thanks for reading and reviewing, guys! Review again!  
**


	15. Chapter 15

Rose and Emmett waited for more than one and a half hours until finally something happened. From the bathroom window on the second floor – yes, they chose that room so Maddie wouldn't immediately detect them spying on her through the living room window - they saw a car chasing up the driveway of the humans' house. It was a very expensive-looking Bentley and Emmett whistled at seeing that car until they saw it stopping.

The engine turned off and the doors opened as the boys and Maddie got out. They had already known that she had been out and about, but there was something they would have never guessed and it drew gasps from both of them.

Maddie got out of the driver's seat.

The girl did not have a license and she had only once driven before – big thanks to Tanya ... – but that was unmistakably her that had just climbed out of the driver's seat of the Bentley and shut the door, laughing and looking very proud of herself.

"What the -? _Is she insane?!_" Rose asked in disbelief while watching Maddie lean against the side of the car, chatting away. She knew she couldn't drive without a license, what if someone had pulled her over?! That was way too risky and would draw attention!

"I can't blame her, that is a neat car," Emmett uttered, then narrowed his eyes as he saw his little sister hug one of the stupidly grinning guys.

"Emmett -"

"Look, she's coming back!" he whispered and pushed away from the window, then hurried out of the bathroom to make his way downstairs. He had a few questions for the little runaway and just hoped she hadn't done what Rose assumed she had done. She wouldn't manipulate him, right? _Right?_ There was no way in hell she would do something like that. It would explain a few things, sure, but he was still convinced that Mad hadn't done that.

"Emmett, slow down, we still have more than enough time until she arrives!" Rose called after him and waited until he reappeared in the doorway. "She will check her window first and only then will she come in."

"I thought we could meet her half way …," he explained with a shrug, then added in a dark whisper, "and beat someone up."

"No, I'm sure she still thinks we are spending time in the hot tub without having noticed anything unusual," Rose replied and her voice turned darker with every word she said. She really hoped the girl had a very good explanation for why she would deceive them like that, or she would find herself in very, _very_ deep trouble with them - as well as with Carlisle and Esme. But to be honest, there was nothing that would justify switching phones off or making Emmett spend hours being intimate with her only to keep her distracted.

Thankfully, Maddie had finally found the grace to make her way back to the house ... and funny enough, the closer she got, the more the look on her face turned from happy and amused to worried.

_At least she had that much sense left to feel bad for what she had done ..._

They remained standing in the bathroom, because Maddie had not yet reached the house and therefore not noticed that the little 'backdoor' was locked.

_Wasn't that the oldest trick in the book? Sneaking back inside through a window? Geez, that girl …_

A low rattling sound met their ears as Maddie obviously tried to bang the window open. She must be angry somehow, otherwise it wouldn't be that loud. Hopefully she wouldn't break it, or she would get herself deeper into trouble – hopefully she would realise that it was in her best interest to keep the window intact.

As the rattling stopped and she obviously came to the realisation that this wasn't going to work, they could hear her soft footsteps heading up the steps of the wooden porch. She was being really quiet, but since they had already seen her and knew what she was doing, they could hear everything.

* * *

Maddie pulled the car off the main road and down the narrow path that would lead them to the few houses at the lake. She had loved the idea to head out with Chris' brother and his friends to see a little more of the area, so she didn't mind that the guys just wanted to find the next liquor store to get a few six packs of beer. It sucked that - except for blood - she couldn't drink anything. Well, she could, but unfortunately it wouldn't taste good and it definitely wouldn't succeed in quenching her thirst. Besides, where was the fun in drinking alcohol if you only end up bending over the toilet bowl to get rid of that stuff again – without ever having felt tipsy or plastered. No, that was something she could do without.

After they had arrived at the store in their father's Bentley - seriously, these guys were rich! - they decided to finish a few cans while roaming the woods for a while to joke about hauntings and ghost sightings in this area. It was funny to see just _how_ drunk humans could get, well, not that they hadn't been drunk already when they had left the house, but while they were in the forest it got a lot crazier. Maddie found it to be hilarious ... they were like toddlers who babbled something you couldn't understand and bumped into things and each other ... it was great.

But after another while they remembered that there were still a few people waiting at the house and they decided to hit the road again and head back.

And Maddie was the only sober person.

Now she realised that it would be dangerous to let one of them drive. If they ended up wrapping the car around a tree, she would run the risk of losing control over her bloodlust. Thank God nothing had happened on the way to the store ...

But Maddie was certain that draining four guys wouldn't go over too well with her family, and that's why she said she had a learner's permit and it was no problem for her to drive the car back. She figured it would be a good idea, because even if she would get caught by the police, she could persuade the officer to let her go ... and it wouldn't be very responsible of her to let some drunk drive the car back, right? Besides, driving wasn't_ that_ hard …

Well, she did have a few initial problems, but nothing worth mentioning. The car survived without any scratches or dents and the guys only hit their heads twice when she accidentally hit the brakes too hard.

Maddie also learned something: never ever listen to someone who claims he knows a shortcut. Yes, they got lost. People in a drunken state obviously have no sense of orientation whatsoever.

But in the end they found their way back and no one had died – a great success.

After Maddie had parked the car in the driveway, she climbed out of the driver's seat and grinned like an idiot because she had really enjoyed driving.

Wow, she should ask Emmett again if he would let her drive sometime! Oh, _Emmett_ ... she drew in a sharp breath as her thoughts drifted to her brother, whom she had shamelessly manipulated a few hours ago. She wondered if it had been really necessary to do that to him ... well, she won't have to worry about that for a few weeks. And as soon as he remembered, she'd just explain it to him and everything's would be fine. No big deal.

She said good bye to the others, because she didn't want to push her luck ... it was still easy for her to sneak back inside without anyone noticing that she hadn't really come home at around twelve.

As she made her way to their house, she felt worried again and thought about the choices she had made and that she couldn't change anything now. Maybe she shouldn't worry so much ... what's done cannot be undone.

She reached the house and was very careful not to make too many noises as she walked on the muddy ground. Then she headed for the left side of the house where her room and her window was.

_Climb inside, chill on the bed for a few hours and the job would be done for the night._

But as she stepped up to her window, she quickly noticed that something was wrong.

Very wrong.

The window was ... closed.

She was certain that she had opened it before she left, to make sure she could climb back inside without letting her siblings know that she'd be back at a much later time than when she was supposed to be home.

"Oh, no ...," she whispered and pushed against it, but it didn't open. "Oh, no, no, no ... NO!" she rattled at the window, then let out a whine and kicked against the wall in frustration.

"Dammit," she muttered out under her breath and felt uneasiness rising in her.

_Who the heck would close the window?_ There were only two persons who could have done that and she wasn't sure which person was worse.

Hm ... what could she do now? A clever excuse might be that she got hungry and didn't wish to disturb them upstairs ... and so she chose to climb out of the window after she got home. And now - too bad - it's closed.

Nah, her face and clothes were clean, they wouldn't believe her for a second.

Or ... she could jump into the lake now and say she fell ... no, didn't sound awfully convincing either, but at least that way they wouldn't wonder about the missing blood stains.

Her shoulders slumped as she realised that whatever she came up with didn't make much sense ... maybe, just maybe she got lucky and Rose and Em were busy again? Preferably upstairs?

Her only option now was to sneak back into the house through the front door, be real quiet and then make something up as soon as Rose and Em would notice that she's back.

She made her way back to the front of the house on tiptoe, then crept up the steps and reached the porch. To check if someone was downstairs and maybe even waiting for her, she stopped and listened for a moment, but luckily couldn't hear movement or breathing coming from inside. Nothing.

So they were indeed still upstairs doing whatever.

_Phew ..._

She slowly tiptoed to the door and after checking again if someone was downstairs, she turned the door knob slowly and carefully in order to make as little noise as possible. With one hand on the door and one around the knob she tentatively pushed against it until the crack was big enough for her to turn sideways and slip inside. She managed to do so without difficulties, then turned and shut the door with a soft click. A sigh of relief escaped her lips when she stilled once again and couldn't hear any movement from upstairs despite the sound of the door clicking shut. It was audible to vampires, she was sure of that, but today she obviously had a little luck on her side. Everything was according to plan – well, the new plan, of course. The old plan of sneaking back inside through the window had been thwarted by someone.

With a huge grin on her face she turned around and started for the living room when she suddenly felt someone watching her.

She wasn't alone.

She felt her breath catch and a lump rise in her throat as she stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes widening with shock. While she stood there, staring at her sister who was leaning with her back against the wall in the foyer and had her arms folded across her chest, she realised that her new plan sucked.

The silence was heavy, until Rosalie unclenched her jaw for two words.

"Welcome back."

_Shit. _

"Am I in trouble?"

Rose's eyes narrowed. "You have no idea," she replied, pushing away from the wall and walking towards her.

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**What do you think? You seemed curious and I didn't mean to be mean, haha, so I sat down and finished the chapter for you ... it's short but that way you don't have to wait too long!**


	16. Chapter 16

**Hey guys! Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!  
**

**I'm so sorry for not updating sooner, I really am :-/ I didn't have much time to write, so I only had one day (yesterday) to do the whole chapter. Just did a little fine tuning, and now I'm ready to post.**

**Have fun!  
**

* * *

As soon as Rosalie reached the girl, her face wrinkled up into a grimace of disgust.

"You have got to be kidding me ...," she almost growled, making Maddie take a step back.

"What?" Maddie asked, not knowing what her sister was getting at. Rosalie looked mad, and right now Maddie wasn't completely sure why. There were several options - she just didn't know what exactly Rose was talking about right now.

"Where have you been?" Rose demanded, her voice fierce and her eyes dark. She glared at her while she waited for an answer and hoped for Maddie's sake it wouldn't be a lie.

"Over there, at the house," Maddie replied tentatively and pointed over her shoulder.

Rose huffed - out of anger and disbelief. Not even a minute in the house and already lying her ass off – that girl had some nerve.

"You," she said and seized her by the upper arm, "will take a shower now."

While she marched her in the direction of the downstairs bathroom, Maddie looked up at her with a confused facial expression and wide eyes. "A shower? Why would I need to take a shower?"

Was she going to spray her with cold water? _What kind of a stupid punishment for sneaking back inside was that?_

"I can smell their alcohol breaths on you," she said disdainfully and pushed Maddie into the bathroom before shutting the door and walking away with quick, angry steps.

Maddie stood there for a moment, doing nothing but staring at the closed door, and then she slowly started to undress.

While this was seriously weird, she also should thank Rose for giving her enough time to come up with something that would make her look completely innocent.

Kicking her clothes off to the side, she got into the shower and turned the water on as she thought about what she could say now to calm Rose down.

_What would be a good excuse?_ _How much did she know?_ _And what did Emmy know?_ Unfortunately she had no idea …

As she heard the door open again, she quickly reached for a bottle of shampoo to make it less apparent that she was stalling and trying to conjure up excuses for her absence. But Rose didn't enter to check on her. She just brought her a fresh set of clothes and placed it down on the closed toilet seat, then left the room again to let her finish her shower and get dressed.

Maddie so did not want to come out of the bathroom again, because as long as she didn't know what Rose and Em knew, she couldn't make up proper excuses that would explain where she had been and what she had been doing. It was just plain mean that Rose hadn't mentioned anything before ... but then Maddie shrugged her shoulders. It was very likely that Rose only knew she had left the house again for two hours … nothing more. And where was the problem if the guys had a few beers? She didn't have a single drop, so Rose shouldn't be mad at her. And sneaking back inside … hello? She wasn't the first person to do something like that - Emmett has done it a million times! It's no big deal.

When she emerged from the bathroom after getting dressed and brushing through her hair, she could already see Rose and Em waiting for her in the living room. They stopped their whispered conversation and looked at her without blinking, expecting her to come to them so they could talk.

Seeing that there was no use in turning around and hiding in the bathroom or locking herself in her own room, she slowly made her way to an armchair in the living room and sat down while trying to ignore the looks her siblings gave her. She could feel their eyes on her, and she didn't like it as it made her uncomfortable.

"Where have you been?" Rose asked. It was the same question she asked after she had entered the house, and suddenly Maddie realised that she hadn't believed her. That sucked, but at least now she knew it wouldn't make any sense to tell her the same lie again.

"We drove around," she admitted and held her sister's gaze.

"Where did you go?" Rose queried. She really, really hoped Maddie hadn't been to a bar and manipulated someone into believing that she was old enough. She knew Emmett let her to that so they could watch horror movies at the movie theatre, but this was something completely different. She had been all alone, surrounded by drunkards.

"To the store, and then we walked through the forest for a little while," Maddie explained, before her eyes widened and a smile appeared on her face as she remembered something. "Did you know that ghosts have been sighted in this area?"

Emmett's jaw dropped and he seemed more than just a little curious all of a sudden. "Really?"

"Uh-huh," Maddie said excitedly and nodded her head while curling up in the armchair. "They say that -"

"We are not talking about ghosts now," Rose interrupted her.

"But-" "No."

Maddie distorted her mouth. "Well, what do you want to talk about?" she asked and shrugged her shoulders like she couldn't think of anything else to talk about.

"You," Rose replied and narrowed eyes her eyes at her.

Maddie bit her lip as silence filled the room. Rose was indeed making her nervous, because she had no idea what her sister knew.

"Will you tell us what you did or do you want us to guess?"

Maddie gasped. "But I just told you! We left, then went to the store and the forest. Then we came back and now I'm here."

"Did you buy alcohol?"

"Did I-? Hell no," Maddie snorted. Why would she buy that? Why would she spend her money on something she couldn't consume?

"But the others did?" Rose asked and started to look extremely upset.

She nodded. "Uh-huh. So?"

"_So?_"

"Yeah. Where's the problem? Let them drink their asses off," she replied and shrugged. "I think it's funny."

Rose gasped, then knelt in front of Maddie and grabbed both her hands. "That is dangerous. You will never go near drunken people again, you hear?"

"What?" Maddie frowned as Rosalie's dark eyes bore into hers and the grip she had on her hands tightened.

"I don't want you to go near people who are drunk, _do you understand_?" she asked urgently and without realising tightened the grip even more, almost balling her hands into fists.

Maddie tried to free her hands as it started to become painful. "Rose, ow! You're hurting me."

"Rosie, let go," Emmett said softly and placed a hand on Rosalie's shoulder to make her let go and sit back down next to him. "Let go, babe, it's all right. Let go."

Rose took a deep breath and immediately released Maddie's hands, then patted her knee. "… I'm sorry," she whispered, seemingly shocked that she had hurt her without even noticing.

She sat down next to Emmett again and raked her fingers through her hair as she released a breath and closed her eyes for a brief moment. When she opened them again, the next question had already left her mouth. "Who drove the car?"

"That one guy."

"Mad,_ you_ drove that Bentley," Emmett threw in to keep her from telling them lies. They had seen her, so he decided to let her know immediately before Rose could get mad.

Maddie gaped at him, but quickly realised that they must have watched her come home. They must have noticed that she hadn't been in her room and that's why they had waited by the window for her return.

So she just nodded her head, shifting her gaze to Rose for a second to see how she would react now.

"You don't have a license, so why would you drive? Do you even realise how dangerous that is? What if you had lost control over the car and caused an accident? Or someone had caught you? That's drawing attention – the exact opposite of what we are supposed to do!" Rose ranted and glared at her.

"I would have made the officer forget – no big deal."

Rose drew in a sharp breath. "There were four other humans with you in the car!"

"I do know that, but who believes a drunk? Besides, I doubt they would have noticed anything." She had to be careful that no one would witness her using her little trick on people, but she was experienced by now. School could be so boring, so she used the time to practice a little. And if little school girls were stupid, then drunk guys were even more so, right?

"That was just plain irresponsible!"

"No, it wasn't! I was being totally responsible by not letting a drunk guy drive a car full of fragile humans around! What was I to do? I have driven a car before and with my speed and reflexes I am always a better driver than someone who cannot even walk five steps without falling over."

Emmett glanced at Rose, because he thought that was actually a good explanation. A car accident would definitely draw more attention to them than Maddie driving without a license. She didn't have much experience when it came to driving, but the car looked fine so she had managed, no problem.

But his dear wife did not share his view, it seemed. "You don't have a license!"

Maddie was close to growling as she stood up and yelled, "I'm eighteen! I would have a license by now if Carlisle hadn't changed me!"

"No, you would be dead by now!" Rose yelled in return.

Maddie glowered at her before she sat back down in the chair, averted her eyes and folded her arms across her chest. "I don't wanna talk anymore," she mumbled.

"Too bad, we're not done yet," Rose replied while glaring at the girl.

Placing a hand on her upper arm, Emmett managed to catch Rose's attention. He shook his head at her, telling her that way that it wasn't okay to use something like that as an argument. What she had just told her sister was hurtful, and she should be a little more sensitive despite her anger. After all, these were still touchy subjects – age, maturing and the circumstances of her change – and Rose needed to get her temper in check before the situation could get out of hand.

Rosalie sighed as she realised that yelling would get them nowhere and that she should be a lot more careful with what she says. "I didn't mean to say that, Maddie," Rose said softly by way of apology. The situation was stressful, probably for all of them, but she as the older one should try to keep calm in order to have a discussion that would actually get them somewhere. "I can understand why you did that, but there have been other options."

Maddie looked down at her hands, not willing to meet her sister's gaze, and asked, "Like what?"

"You should have never gotten into that car with them if you knew they were already drunk even before you left the house."

"And who would have driven the car back? How would they have come back home?" Maddie questioned, a frown etched onto her face as she didn't understand Rose's logic.

"That is not your concern."

Maddie lifted her head and blinked her eyes at her sister, before letting out a very unladylike snort. "I don't think Dad would agree with you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I know that's a safe car, but they might have caused an accident. I made sure they wouldn't get hurt."

While that made sense once again, Emmett had to tell her that there had been yet another option.

"But that's why you have your phone. If you find yourself in a situation like this where you have to make a decision between watching someone get hurt and drawing attention to yourself, you should call us. That's one of the reasons why you have to have a phone with you at all times. We could have come pick you up and drive them home safely."

And that brought them back to something.

"Why did you switch your phone off?" Rosalie asked and crossed her arms.

_Oh, dear … what else did she know?_

"I didn't!" Maddie countered. It wasn't true, but now that she had said it, she couldn't take it back again.

"Yes, you did."

Maddie rolled her eyes, indicating that she thought Rose was a little dense tonight. "Maybe … the battery died and I didn't notice? Ever thought about that?"

"And you didn't check?"

"I must have forgot," she replied. "I'm sorry, but that can happen!"

"Bring me your phone," Rose ordered and, with her arms still crossed, started to drum her fingers impatiently.

Maddie gave her a sceptical look. "Why?"

"Just bring it here."

With a frown on her face, Maddie left the room and entered the bathroom where her 'stinky' clothes lay. She reached into the pocket of her jeans and pulled her phone out, then suddenly realised what Rose wanted to do ... She wanted to switch it back on to check the battery.

_Rose 1, Me 0, dammit._

Maybe she should just remove the battery and then she wouldn't be able to switch it back on … but the phone would be too light and she would notice.

"What's taking you so long?" Rose called.

_Shit._

In a hurry Maddie opened the phone and removed the battery, then held it in her hand to check how much it weighed. Could she stuff a piece of soap in there? … or just break the battery to make sure it wouldn't work?

Just as she wanted to put a little piece of toilet paper between the contacts of the battery and the phone and then put the back cover back on, a voice startled her and she nearly dropped everything.

"Are you done manipulating the battery?" Rose asked lazily while watching her from the hallway.

"Um ..."

"Put it down and come back to the living room," Rose said and turned around, then walked back to the couch and sat down.

Maddie followed, because she didn't know what else to do. _Why was it so hard to fool her?_

"You switched the house phone off as well, didn't you?" Rosalie asked as soon as Maddie's butt met the sitting surface of the chair.

_How rude _... she really didn't let her take a breather before bombarding her with the next question... "Maybe the charger isn't working," Maddie suggested, but could already feel that that wasn't the right answer, because Rosalie huffed in agitation.

"Could you please stop it? I'm getting quite tired of you trying to wriggle your way out of it."

"I'm not!"

"Maddie, our cell phones have been muted, your phone and the house phone were switched off and you were trying to sneak back into your room through the window at two o'clock in the morning. Now tell me: Are these just strange coincidences or do you maybe have something to do with that?"

"Well, I … I did not mute your phones," Maddie uttered, and glanced at them before quickly averting her eyes. Oh no, she was so stupid ... she had just given away what she had done ...

"That is true. _You _did not mute them," Rose said humourlessly and the way she said it made Maddie feel nauseous. Goddammit, she had known already … of course she had, otherwise she would have never noticed that she didn't come home at twelve. Great.

"Did you manipulate Emmett?" she asked fiercely and watched Maddie glance in between her and Em. The question seemed to make her nervous, and that made an answer nearly redundant. Nonetheless, Rose asked again. "Did you manipulate Emmett, Maddie?"

"Um, I-"

"Did you?"

She refused to answer and bit her lip instead, but Rose wanted to hear her say it. "_Answer me._"

"Yes," she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper, and she hung her head in shame. She was truly ashamed of herself for that, and there was no need denying it. She had thought she would have a few weeks until she would have to explain everything to Emmett. She had been so sure he would understand, but now she had her doubts - for a reason. Maddie would have expected anything to happen, but not that: All of a sudden Emmett stood up from the couch and left the room.

Her head shot back up and she looked at him with wide eyes. "Em-" she started to say, but he shook his head while ascending the stairs, never turning around to look at her. "Don't, Maddie, … just don't."

And that hurt.

It hurt her that Emmett just left, and it hurt her that she must have hurt him so bad that he couldn't even stand to be in the same room as her.

"Emmett," she called, but her voice was weak and cracking slightly. She could hear a door close, and then she knew calling for him wouldn't change anything - he would not come back downstairs.

As venom welled up in her eyes and she looked down at her folded hands, Rosalie cleared her throat to catch her attention.

While it was good that she felt bad for what she had done and regretted it, Rose still needed to finish the talk with her and address some more things that happened.

"He's disappointed in you," Rose told her little sister, who looked completely miserable now. "You betrayed his trust and mine, and that hurts."

"I'm sorry," Maddie said and a sob escaped her lips before she could press them together tightly, willing herself not to cry.

She did not succeed and a moment later thick tears rolled down her cheeks and she was openly crying. She was just about to bury her face in her hands, but Rose seized her by the wrist to keep her from doing so, then started to wipe her tears away with a tissue. "A plain 'I'm sorry' is not good enough, Maddie," she told her softly while mopping up the venom streaking her young face.

"What do you want me to do?" Maddie queried exasperatedly and pulled away to keep Rose from cleaning her face. "If I could, I would make it undone!"

She cried again for what seemed like a minute, then all of a sudden she looked up at her sister with large, teary eyes. Before Rose could start to worry if her sister had gone into a state of shock, Maddie spoke again. "I will-" she started to say and stood up, but Rose pushed her back into the soft upholstery of the armchair while fixing her with a glare.

"_Have you lost your mind?! _You are sorry for using your ability on him, and now you want to do it _again_? What is wrong with you?!"

"I wanna make him feel better," Maddie said timidly and sniffled, then wiped the back of her hand under her nose to get rid of the gooey venom.

"No, you want to make yourself feel better," Rose told her and ripped another tissue from the box on the coffee table before holding it out to her.

She was right in a way, Maddie had to admit ... she didn't want Emmett to be mad at her ... or be disappointed in her, and that's why she wanted to make him forget. But she couldn't do that, because Rose wouldn't let her and it wasn't right to invade his mind yet again. So now she had to sit here and endure the heavy guilt and sadness she felt without being able to do anything about it - Emmett was upset and it was all her fault.

She curled up on the chair as the scrutinising look Rose gave her made her feel very uncomfortable and small.

Rose shook her head at seeing Maddie wallowing in self-pity, then smacked her lightly on the upper thigh as she was about to smear her venom-snot onto the upholstered armrest of the chair. Rose quickly cleaned her hand, then held a new tissue out for her to take. "What exactly did you make him do? Be honest."

Maddie took the tissue, then wiped at her eyes and sniffled again, before taking a deep breath to make sure her voice wouldn't quiver. "I made him mute the phones and walk upstairs, then ask you to take a bath with him. I told him to go downstairs at five to twelve to bring you a rose, then tell you he saw me and that I said Hello to him."

"And you left your window open to make sure you could sneak back inside."

Maddie shrugged her shoulder.

"Hm?"

"Yes," Maddie admitted quietly and sniffled a little.

Rose sighed as she sat down on the couch and placed a hand on her sister's knee. "You know … I just don't understand how you could do something like that. You willingly deceived us just because you didn't want us to come pick you up."

"I'm a responsible adult, and I don't need anyone to come pick me up. That is just stupid," Maddie replied petulantly and pushed Rose's hand away. Then she threw her dirty tissue forcefully down on the floor and started to wipe her face on the hem of her T-shirt.

Rose tzked at seeing that, then said, "You acted like a child today, there was nothing mature or adult about it! You drove a car without a license … you lied, deceived us and misused your ability. Do you really consider yourself a responsible person after everything you have done?"

Maddie stood up from the armchair and made to leave the room, but Rose kept her from taking just another step. "I want you to sit back down, we are not finished yet."

"What now?" Maddie asked and glared at her. "What else do you have to say to me, huh? That I cannot be trusted? That you call Carlisle and rat me out? Go for it, I don't give a shit," she spat, then turned and walked around the chair to reach the hallway.

Rose let out a laugh that startled Maddie enough to make her turn back around and stare at her in confusion.

"I won't tell on you, don't be silly."

"Huh?"

"You messed up, but since you are a 'responsible adult', _you_ can call him and explain what happened today. "

Maddie snorted – it sounded a little gross since she still had venom in her nose. "Hell no, I won't do that."

"Fine with me, then don't," Rose said with a shrug, then inspected her nails like she considered the talk to be over.

Maddie eyed her suspiciously, because that didn't make any sense. "_See?!_ I know that you will call him anyway, and that's why I won't do it."

"Maddie, I won't call him. You have ... let's see … about a week to pick up the phone, dial the number and tell him what you did. If you don't want to do that, then don't. But the moment Carlisle and Esme take a step over the threshold, we will let them know what happened. And I'm almost certain that that will ruin their first day of vacation. Do you want that to happen?"

"Well, that would happen one way or the other, don't you think?" she queried and crossed her arms – looking exactly like a petulant child.

Rose shook her head. "Not really. Just imagine what he would feel like and how displeased he would be if he found out that you have kept him in the dark about what you have done … and for a solid week at that."

Oh. Now Maddie understood what Rose was doing ... but two could play that game. "He would be mad at you for not keeping an eye on me."

"You are always being so responsible, aren't you? We trusted you, and you deceived us … now who is to blame?" Rose asked and tipped her index finger against her lips, looking at the ceiling with eyes narrowed in thought.

_Aww man! Fine, different approach. _"He would be mad at you, too, for … not telling him anything."

"No, he wouldn't. He would only be upset with us if we let you continue to do as you pleased and not keep a closer eye on you from now on. But that won't happen, because until you haven't called him, you won't leave this house."

Maddie's jaw dropped as she stared at her sister in disbelief. "You're _grounding_ me?"

"You are grounding yourself."

"This is stupid," Maddie spat, then turned and left the room.

"Take your time, but not too long!" Rose called after her and waved until Maddie's door closed with a not-so-soft thud.

Seeing that this had been taken care of, Rose walked up the stairs in search of her poor husband. _He must be feeling awful now …_

* * *

"Emmett?" Rose called and peeked into their room. She found Emmett sitting on their bed, 'playing' solitaire. The cards were bent and wrinkled and he just continued staring at the few cards left in his hand while Rose approached him. She actually had hoped they could do the talk together with Maddie, but she could also understand that he needed some time to himself when he realised that she had been right about that - his little sister had betrayed his trust and forced him into doing things he wasn't aware of.

"Talk to me," she pleaded softly and sat down next to him. He clenched and unclenched his jaw, then suddenly threw the cards down forcefully before shoving them unceremoniously off the bed.

"Em-" "_Why would she do that?_" he queried, breathing heavily. "We told her she could stay there as long as she liked, and she knows she can go out as long as she is reachable ... so why would she do that?" he asked. He just couldn't believe she had entered his mind and compelled him to do whatever she wanted. It was a weird feeling, because everything he had done today had appeared to be his thoughts and ideas. He wanted to get into the jacuzzi with Rose, and he thought giving her a rose that he had given her a day before was a brilliant idea. And he was one hundred percent sure that he had seen Maddie come home. The memory was so vivid in his mind that it seemed so absurd that it wasn't real. It felt real to him.

Rose wasn't sure if he was talking to himself or to her, she did not know. But when he didn't say anything after a moment of silence but buried his face in his hands, she spoke.

"I know you're angry with her and -"

He dropped his hands to his lap and whipped his head around to look at her. "I'm not, and that's the problem! I am so disappointed, and I hate being disappointed so. much. that I am getting mad at myself for feeling that way. _Gah, where's Jasper when you need him?_"

So even when Maddie played him like a puppet on strings, he couldn't be mad at her. That was so Emmett – he would rather be mad at himself even though he shouldn't be. It was natural to feel disappointed with someone who betrayed you - Rose didn't like that it angered him and made him feel even worse.

"And ..."

"And what, Em?"

He huffed. "She is such a tiny, little thing ... how could she have possibly managed to order me around? I'm strong, for crying out loud."

"Aww, Emmett," Rose said and bit her lip to keep herself from smirking. The situation wasn't funny, of course it wasn't, but Emmy was sulky because he really thought something like that would only happen to weak people. "it's not about physical strength."

"Yeah, but ... I thought she could only do it to people who weren't very strong ... or smart for that matter - like Edward."

"You are right, he isn't very strong or smart," she joked with him. A smirk appeared on his face, but as quickly as it came it was gone and he seemed to be miserable once again. He was disappointed and angry, and Rose wanted nothing more but to make him feel better.

She got up on her knees and hugged him, letting her cheek rest on his dark hair while she felt him encircling her waist with his muscular arms. She could feel him relax as his breathing got lighter and more even, and when she was sure he was calm again, she pulled away to sit back down next to him and look him in the eye.

"She was crying her eyes out when you left the room. I think she is really regretting having manipulated you."

Emmett gasped and made to climb off the bed. "Oh no, I need -"

"No, no, Emmett. Don't go downstairs. I think it's good for her to feel remorse, please don't go find her and console her now."

While Emmett could understand why Rose wanted him to leave Maddie alone so she could think about everything, he also felt bad in a way. She was sad, and even though he knew he was able to make her feel better, he wouldn't do it.

"I still don't understand why she would act like that … are we to blame?" Emmett asked and looked at her with guilty eyes.

Rose smirked and shook her head a little, startling him. "I blame Carlisle and Esme."

"Why?"

"Think about it … when she came back to us, they let her do whatever she wanted," Rose said.

"Because she's a child and they wanted her to feel comfortable living with us." He shrugged and looked back at her, curious what she thought about that.

"They felt guilty and were scared that if they held her accountable for her actions, she would go back to hating them and then leave. And she was aware of that."

"Aww come on, she barely screwed up and she couldn't leave the house without one of us accompanying her."

_Barely._ "I know, but I think this is almost the same situation now. She thought we would let her do whatever she wants."

"We can't do that. And we both know she won't leave us."

"I think that's why she had felt the need to manipulate you. She cannot 'blackmail' us, and she knows it. She also knows that if she doesn't do as she's told, she has to face consequences. That's why she tricked you - to make sure she wouldn't get caught."

Rose wasn't comfortable accusing her sister of blackmailing Carlisle and Esme, because she hadn't actively done so. She had just taken advantage of the situation, but that was bad enough. _Blasted vampire nature ..._

"And what are the consequences?" he asked nervously. Well, to be honest he already knew what the consequences of her actions would be, but who … no. That was out of the question. "Just to let you know, I won't do it. Nuh-uh," he said quickly and held his hands up, palms toward her, while shaking his head vehemently.

"I know, Emmett, and neither will I," Rose told him and patted him gently on the cheek.

He reached up and grabbed her hand, only to pull it in front of himself and covering it with both of his own hands. "Baby, I love you, but ... huh?"

* * *

**Long enough? ;-)  
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**Next chapter will be up in a week, I guess, because I would like to update FaF next!  
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**I'm so curious what you think about this chapter ... Like it? Hate it? Please review!****  
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	17. Chapter 17

**Thank you for your reviews! I'm glad you liked the last chapter, guys!**

**Hopefully you'll like this one, too ...**

* * *

As soon as Maddie reached the privacy of her room and had shut the door behind her, she felt how her anger and defiance crumbled and she was left feeling miserable and desperate to the point that she couldn't think straight.

She had manipulated Emmett, and now he was disgusted with her and didn't want to see her anymore … after all, he had left the room.

The memory brought tears to her eyes and a tidal wave of guilt and desperation hit her as she cursed herself for being so stupid. He had turned his back on her, and she had to admit that that was exactly what she deserved, even though it tore her apart from the inside out.

He was her favourite brother in the world and now she had ruined everything. She had betrayed his trust, manipulated him and he hated her for that.

Unable to hold it in any longer, she threw herself down on her bed and buried her face in one of the big pillows while weeping bitterly.

She did not know how to fix this again ... what could she do?

A simple 'I'm sorry' and maybe a pretty gift would appear more like an insult than an offer of amends, and would make the whole situation even worse. And as long as Emmy wouldn't want to see her, she couldn't do anything anyways.

The urge to run upstairs into his room and promise to never do it again was building up inside of her, but she had to ignore it as Emmett had probably locked his door to make sure she would leave him alone.

And all of a sudden she felt so incredibly lost.

Remorse about what she had done and all this jumble of thoughts in her head were bad enough on their own … but now Rose expected her to call Carlisle.

She couldn't do that. Even if she wanted to, she couldn't. It just wasn't possible. He would be furious with her – Esme as well.

But furious wasn't the main problem … they would be disappointed and probably even say that she couldn't be trusted.

She didn't know how she would be able to handle yet another person's disappointment … one more person whose trust she had lost and she wasn't sure what to do.

Additionally, she would get a thrashing like never before. The last time she 'misused' her ability, Rose brought her some ice packs afterwards to help her and her butt. This time it would be worse and she couldn't see her sister bringing her ice packs when it was over. Nope, she was on her own now and it made her feel miserable and lonely.

She didn't want to tell Carlisle … but the thought of having Rose tell him when they would arrive wasn't awfully pleasant either as he would interpret her silence as attempted deception. She knew it would be better to pick up the phone and get it over with, but ...

The thing was ... she couldn't leave the house now as long as she didn't make that freakin' call, but she knew that Carlisle would ground her as well - she didn't see how that would change. So one way or the other she would have to feel Emmett's contempt for her, day and night, for a whole week. Not that she didn't deserve it, but she wasn't sure if she was strong enough to endure it. And having both her parents mad at her on top of that? No, that was too much.

When she heard noises coming from the living room, she sat up and wiped at her eyes before glancing at the alarm clock standing on the bedside table.

Wow, she had been lying here for hours … but still didn't know what to do.

_Maybe … maybe Emmy was in the living room now?_

She could crack open her door and peek out to see if he was there. He'd definitely notice her and then she would see if he would talk to her or leave again.

Or maybe he would yell at her – that would actually be a good thing, she figured. That way he could vent his anger and disappointment and that'd make him feel better.

Although she was really scared of opening the door, she knew she needed to do it or she would go crazy with all the doubts, the guilt and the sadness she felt.

So she slowly crept over to her door and listened carefully to see who was there, before she opened it just a crack.

She couldn't hear anything except for the TV, and so she opened the door further and stepped into the hallway.

On tiptoes she reached the living room and saw that Rosalie was sitting in an armchair, watching the early morning news.

Immediately Rose noticed her presence and glanced at her, then continued to focus her attention on what the newscaster was reporting.

Well, at least Rose could tell her how Emmy was feeling and what she could do to fix this … if there was a way to fix this.

Maddie slowly took a few more steps, then sat down on the edge of the couch and looked hesitantly at her blond sister who didn't take her eyes off the TV.

Maddie bit her lip and looked down at her folded hands, now deeming her questions to be quite idiotic. There was _no way_ she could ever fix this.

"Did you call him yet?" Rose suddenly asked, startling Maddie who had been deep in thought.

Shaking her head, Maddie felt a strong sense of discomfort again at her sister mentioning the dooming call.

Rose looked at her as she didn't get a verbal answer, and as she saw her shaking her head, she groaned. "That isn't very wise, but it's your decision."

Seeing that their talk was obviously over, Maddie took a deep breath to steel herself for what she was going to ask now.

"How is he?"

"Emmett?" Rose asked, then shrugged her shoulders as she looked back at the TV. "Disappointed, angry, hurt."

_Bam._

Rosalie really was brutally honest. That's what Maddie loved about Rose, because she could count on her not to lie to her. But this time her honesty made her feel even worse.

"Does he ..." "I don't think he wants to come downstairs, no," Rose told her as she had asked him if he wanted to watch the news, but he preferred to read in their room.

And that was exactly what Maddie hoped wouldn't happen.

Em didn't want to see her.

Feeling close to tears again, she stood up and made to leave the room so she could continue to soak her pillow with her venom, but Rose stood up from her chair and frowned at her.

"Where are you going?" she asked softly and noticed for the first time her tear-stained cheeks and that her shirt was discoloured in several spots.

"My room," Maddie whispered, not trusting herself to speak any louder because her voice might crack and she would break down right in front of her. Rose hadn't done anything wrong, so she shouldn't feel obliged to comfort her. And she couldn't allow anyone to comfort her … she herself was to blame for the way she felt as she had been the one who screwed up - no one else.

"Maddie," Rosalie said and sighed. "Make the call." She gave her a look that seemed pleading or pitying … Maddie did not know as her vision started to blur and she just wanted to go back to her room and shut the door behind herself. She couldn't make that call, and that's why she shook her head, then left the room and disappeared into her own.

* * *

"Where's Maddie? I haven't seen her all day," Emmett asked as he entered his and Rose's room after having been to the the living room. It was late in the evening and the house seemed unusually quiet – uncomfortably quiet.

"She's in her room," Rose said and looked up at him over her magazine.

"... and?" he queried while coming to a halt in front of her, expecting her to give him a little more information. Why she wouldn't come out, for example.

"I told her to call Carlisle and tell him what happened, but she doesn't want to."

"Of course she doesn't want to," he said, then mumbled, "Heck, I wouldn't want to, that's for sure."

Rose nodded then continued to read her magazine.

Emmett stood there and watched her for a moment, trying to decide if he should really suggest what he wanted to suggest. "Don't you think we could just … well, not tell Carlisle?" he asked hesitantly.

Dropping her magazine to her lap, Rose practically gaped at him. "What?"

"I mean … come on, you know what he'll do."

_Oh, Emmett …_ "Yes, but she knew that before she decided to be all 'grown up'. There is no way we can let her get away with that. Even if we ignore the fact that she drove without a license, she still used her ability on you for selfish reasons and made sure nobody would be able to call her or us - that was dangerous and I don't want to see her do it again. Besides, just imagine she does it again and Carlisle finds out that the last time she had done it he hadn't been informed, because we wanted to keep her from getting punished. That's not an option, Emmett." Maddie needed to be held accountable for her actions and they couldn't just act like it had never happened. It would only serve to confuse her and make her think that it was okay to act that way, and then she would find herself in worse trouble soon.

His shoulders slumped as he listened to his wife explaining why they couldn't let this slide and why their father needed to know what happened. She was right with what she said, but he wasn't willing to give up just yet. "Maybe … maybe I could call Carlisle and explain what happened."

She gave him a sad look and shook her head. "Emmett, you still have fake memories in your head. I'm not sure you could explain what happened even if you wanted to. Besides, it is her responsibility, not yours."

"I just wanna help her."

Rose sighed at seeing him looking so crestfallen. "Then help her by telling her to make the call – the longer she waits, the harder it gets. Also you could talk to her and tell her how you feel about her invading your mind without permission. She needs to understand that she can lose someone's trust by doing so and that it's very dishonest and disrespectful."

Emmett looked like he wanted to argue, so Rosalie added, "I know she feels guilty and that's why I want her to call Carlisle as soon as possible."

That shut him up. He had wanted to tell her that Maddie regretted having acted that way and that she wouldn't do it again, but Rose was right: She needed to take responsibility for her actions and she needed to get the chance to let go of her guilt.

"Okay … I see what I can do," he uttered before leaving the room and heading downstairs.

And just like the last time he had been downstairs – a few minutes ago – Maddie was nowhere to be seen. The atmosphere seemed to grow tenser the closer he got to her room, and when he stood right in front of the door, he felt immensely uncomfortable.

Pushing the negative feeling away and concentrating on helping his baby sister, he cleared his throat and called, "Maddie?"

He waited but she did not reply, so he decided to knock on her door in case she hadn't heard him calling her name.

So he rapped his knuckles against the wooden door that separated him from her and said her name again.

This time he could hear movement from inside the room - she shifted on her bed, and when he heard that, he let out a sigh of relief. He was incredibly glad she was home and hadn't taken off again. Just as a smile spread across his face and his fingers wrapped around the door handle to just barge in like he normally did, he heard a snuffling sound that made him freeze instantly. As quickly as the smile had appeared, it vanished again and he took a step back as he realised she must have spent the whole day beating herself up and crying her eyes out.

Was that all because of him? Because she felt bad for manipulating him?

Maybe she was just scared of making the call and that's why she was crying … no matter what it was, it broke his heart to know that she was suffering like that.

Soft footsteps could be heard coming from the other side of the door, and he quickly tried to put on a happy face again as it was more likely to soothe her nerves and help her feel better than a shocked expression.

Slowly the door opened. Just a crack at first, then the door opened wider until he could see Maddie standing there, her shirt covered in venom stains, her face showing trails of thick tears and her hair dishevelled like she had spend all day in bed crying into her pillow and wiping her eyes.

She glanced at him for a split second, and for that short moment their eyes met he could see her dark, glossy eyes and her wet eyelashes. But what was worse for him: she hung her head and refused to look at him again.

_She couldn't even look him in the eye … oh, that was horrible._

He turned around and walked into her bathroom, because it was the only thing he could think of. She didn't seem like she would react well to him hugging her right now, so instead of trying to do that, he grabbed a washcloth from the closet and wetted it with cold water from the tap to have something to wipe the venom on her face away.

Just as he folded it and turned to leave the room again, he heard her door click shut and then the quiet squeaking of the bedsprings.

_Aw, come on, that cannot be happening …_

Finding himself standing in front of a closed door, he knocked again, but this time Maddie didn't get up. He was sure that she could hear him, but she didn't answer. And when he tried her door, it was locked.

* * *

"What's wrong?" Rose asked as Emmett entered the room, looking like he had seen a ghost or something. His face seemed paler than usual and in his hand was a … wet facecloth?

"Emmy?" She pushed forward in her chair and became very anxious all of the sudden. He had been gone for about a minute, and so she wondered what could have possibly happened in that short period of time.

Emmett blinked once. "Um … I don't think she wants to talk to me," he said slowly.

With a look of sympathy on her face, Rose got up from her chair and walked over to him, then took the washcloth from his hand and hugged him.

"I think she does want to talk to you," she said soothingly, "but she is ashamed of herself."

He shook his head and pulled away from her to look her in the eyes. "No, Rose. She looked at me for, like, not even half a second, and then she looked at the floor. I went to the bathroom to get _that_ for her and when I came back, her door was locked."

"She locked the door?"

"Yes."

"Hm."

Rose had to admit that she didn't like that. The girl was supposed to think about what she had done and then make a decision. But crying all day was definitely not helping - it wasn't helping anyone, not even herself.

And then Rose's eyes narrowed … if that behaviour was only meant to make them feel bad now, so that she wouldn't be in trouble anymore, then she had another thing coming.

Sure, that seemed awfully mean, but right now she wouldn't put it past her. After what had happened the day before, she couldn't trust Maddie not to do something like that. Or maybe she had locked the door to leave the house without them noticing. No matter what the reason, she would find out. Right now.

"You know what? Wait here while I go talk to her."

"Okay, but … just make sure she knows that I'm not mad at her. Tell her I'm sorry if she thought that I was," he said while sitting down on the bed, still looking a little shaken.

"Sure, whatever," she muttered under her breath and left the room while rolling her eyes.

Hurrying down the stairs and walking through the living room, she was standing in front of Maddie's room in record time and knocked on the door. Maddie did not say anything, not even when Rosalie called her name. And Rosalie didn't really like that.

"Maddie, enough already. Open the door."

Rose wasn't sure if the way she said it did the trick, but she heard shuffling of feet and the a light click, before the door opened.

She had noticed blotches of venom on Maddie's shirt this morning, but now it was a lot worse – and it wasn't just the shirt.

The girl was a mess and Rose was glad she still had the facecloth in her hand, because she wasn't sure if she could talk to her when she looked _like this_.

"Come here," she said and as Maddie opened the door further and took a step into the hallway, Rosalie put a hand under her chin while starting to wipe the streaks and smears of venom away.

She didn't get to clean very much as the cloth was immediately soiled, and so she grabbed her by the wrist and led her into the bathroom, making her sit down on the closed toilet seat while she rinsed the washcloth.

"Did you spend all day crying, Maddie?" she asked with concern in her voice and started cleaning her face again. Now she was certain that this wasn't a trick to make them feel bad. She was feeling wretched – there was no way she could fake this and it was almost like her emotions were radiating off of her. No, this wasn't an act.

Maddie shrugged her shoulders and snuffled, so Rose pointed to the toilet paper right next to her so she would take some and blow her nose.

"Crying doesn't change anything. I don't think you'll feel any better until you have talked to Emmett and Carlisle."

At the mention of her brother's name, fresh tears sprang to Maddie's eyes and her face scrunched up, making Rose tzk when she noticed that. "Enough with the tears, come on," she said softly and patted her hair, before turning to the side to rinse the cloth once more.

Maddie averted her eyes and snuffled again, so Rose reached over and gave her a few pieces of toilet paper to make sure she would blow her nose. She was certain that some of the discomfort Maddie was feeling was due to all the venom clogging her throat and nose and leaking from her eyes.

"Why are you crying so much, hm?" she asked and watched her sister wipe her nose.

"Because I ruined everything," Maddie replied while looking at the soiled paper in her hand.

"What do you think you ruined?"

Maddie took a shaky breath, then exhaled slowly. "Well, Em ..."

When she didn't speak any further, Rose decided to guess. "You think you ruined your relationship with Emmett?"

"I did," Maddie said sadly and hung her head. "He can't stand to be near me."

_What?_ "What makes you think that? When he left the room yesterday, it was because he needed time to think. Hearing that his memories of the last few hours weren't real was a shock to him."

"But ... just now he did the same."

And then Rose realised what must have happened. Emmett had wanted to talk to her and since she couldn't look him in the eye due to the heavy guilt she felt, she averted her eyes and did not notice that he went to the bathroom. She thought he left; that he still wasn't able to be in the same room as her.

"See this here?" Rose asked and held the washcloth up for her to see. "Emmett went to the bathroom because he wanted to clean your face. He did not leave because he cannot stand your presence."

All of a sudden Maddie's eyes started to shine a little. Well, due to the venom that was still glazing her eyes, but also due to the little bit of hope that bubbled up inside of her. Maybe there was still a slight chance that he might like her again ...

"Why did you lock your door?"

It was silent for a moment, until Maddie looked up at her through wet lashes and whispered, "I didn't want it to happen again."

Oh, rejection. That's why she had opened the door for her but not for Emmett. Feeling rejected is horrible - it was actually a smart move that she tried to spare herself that on top of feeling guilty and ashamed of herself. She was probably also a tat bit angry that she got caught and additionally she was scared and nervous to call Carlisle. Quite the tumult of emotions that girl was enduring. But she had brought it on herself.

Rose knelt down and took Maddie's hand in hers, letting her thumb run back and forth along her knuckles. It was all she could do right now, as Maddie didn't look like she would want a hug or even tolerate one.

When Maddie looked calm enough that she wouldn't immediately start crying again, Rose sent her to her room to change her shirt, then sat her down in the living room and called for Emmett so they could talk about everything.

"You look better," Emmett said as he seated himself across from Maddie, looking her over for signs of distress. He didn't like that she didn't seem to feel comfortable in his presence and he hoped they could change that just by having a talk.

She shook her head a little and as he tilted his head to the side because he didn't understand what she was getting at, she dropped her gaze and swallowed heavily, like she was once again trying to keep the tears at bay.

Emmett felt horrible. It hurt him to see her like that, and it hurt him even more that - appparently - he was the one who caused her that much grief and sadness.

He shot out of his seat and sat down next to her, but as he put an arm around her shoulders to console her, she shook it off and scooted away from him.

"Maddie, what's wrong? I'm not mad at you, come," he said, trying to embrace her and give comfort to help her feel better, but she shook her head again.

"You should be," she whispered and wiped at her eyes with her knuckles as her vision blurred like it had done so many times that day.

Oh wow ... and he had done it _again_. She was crying ... she had never cried that much in her life, he was sure of that. No one had ever cried that much, ever.

"Please don't cry," he pleaded and looked around helplessly, searching for Rose who could hopefully give her comfort as he clearly wasn't the person she accepted it from. He saw Rose leaning with her hip against the backrest of one of the armchairs, her arms crossed; but instead of helping, she just looked at him and nodded toward Maddie, telling him to keep going.

"Why," Maddie asked tonelessly while looking at the ground.

"Because ... nothing happened," he said and glanced at Rose, who suddenly glared at him. He shrugged his shoulders and gave her an apologetic look, because what he said had been the only thing that came to his mind.

"But that doesn't count," Maddie said, "Just because nothing happened doesn't mean that it wasn't wrong of me to ... do that."

He sighed. "That's true."

"See?" Maddie asked and looked at him.

While that hadn't exactly been a clever way to start this talk, it had helped to make her look at him, stop crying and tell him that the argument he just used and she normally used as well, wasn't a good one.

"You made a mistake ... that happens. Heck, I've made about a million mistakes and I'm still here, as happy as a pig in shit. See?" he said and leaned back, a huge grin plastered across his face.

Maddie snorted, and it made a bit of snot come out of her nose. "Eww ..."

He laughed and handed her a tissue from the box standing on the coffee table, and she wiped her nose so she wouldn't have to sit here with bogeys sticking out of her nose. "Thanks."

"For what?"

She held the tissue up and gave him a questioning look.

"And what about making you laugh? Don't you feel better already?" he asked, but immediately regretted it as she bit her lip and hung her head.

_Starting over ..._

Just as he wanted to apologise to her, she spoke again.

"Em, I don't want you to be mad at me. I swear I'll never do it again," she told him and seemed completely miserable again.

"Shush, I already told you that I'm not mad at you," he replied, waving his hand in a dismissive manner.

"But you should be!" she retorted angrily, glaring at him before she realised that she was once again offending him. He'd never speak a single word to her again if she kept it up, and that's why she quickly hung her head quickly, focussing on her hands in her lap.

"Mad ... have you been mad at Eddie-boy when he broke your finger off?"

She eyed the faint scar around her left index finger, then looked up at him with a confused facial expression. "No, that was an accident."

"Exactly. And I think when you make a decision, it's also nothing but an accident, and that's why I'm not mad at you," he said with confidence and when he glanced at his wife to check if what he had just said was all right, he saw her giving him a look of shock and disbelief.

"Huh?" Maddie uttered and sniffled. "So … you are saying that I'm stupid?"

"No!" he cried and his eyes were wide as he tried to save the situation before his sister would leave the room. He had never meant to insult her! "No, no, ... I mean .. you make decisions ... the way a toddler would."

From the corner of his eye he saw Rosalie shooting him a pointed look. So once again, he hadn't said the right thing ... oops.

"I'm a toddler to you?" Maddie asked, positively puzzled by what he was trying to tell her. She had expected him to be mad at her and maybe yell at her ... but what he was saying was just plain weird.

"No! Um ... oh dear, okay. It's like right now, you see ... I'm saying whatever comes to my mind, and then I realise that it's all nonsense ... sometimes I talk without thinking. And sometimes when you make a decision, you act without thinking."

"Aah," Maddie uttered and leaned back in her seat, a thoughtful look on her face. "I think that's true."

And Emmett breathed a sigh of relief, especially because this time Rose looked like she approved.

"And you do talk without thinking ...," Maddie added quietly and glanced at him, checking how he would react to that comment. It was meant to be playful - they loved to banter. But then she doubted that it was the right time to say something like that.

"Tiny, come on, you know I can't do talks like that," he said and scratched the back of his neck, looking at her apologetically.

But seeing that made Maddie scoot closer to him again, and she whispered, "Me neither. But Emmy, I promise I'll never do it again, you have to believe me. _Please._"

"I do, Tiny, of course I do."

* * *

Emmett was sure they were reconciled that night when Maddie went back to her room after a while to have some alone time. But weirdly enough, on the next day she refused going hunting even though they told her she should. She had been on an emotional rollercoaster and all the crying had made her use up a large amount of the blood in her system quite quickly. It wasn't dangerous yet and her eyes weren't black, but going hunting to release some pent-up tension and having some warm and nourishing blood would definitely help her feel better in general.

What Emmett really couldn't understand was that she didn't even want to play Xbox with him. He had said that he forgave her, but somehow she must have had a little trouble believing him.

Rose told him that that wasn't the reason for her behaviour. The girl had trouble forgiving herself. She was aware what she could do with her ability, and she knew that she could force people to do whatever she wanted. She felt horrible for even considering taking Emmett's own free will away and replacing it with her own - even though it was just for a few hours and he hadn't suffered during that time.

They decided it would be best to sit her down in the living room and give her the phone. She needed to confess to Carlisle and hear what punishment she would receive for what she had done. That would be the first step for her to feel a little better because she knew she could start to let go of her guilt and disappointment and would know exactly what to expect when their parents would arrive at the lake. Sure, she would still be nervous, but at least she had clarity about how her penance would look like and could let go of her crushing feelings as the punishment announced by Carlisle was inevitable.

So, just like they had planned, they called her to the living room and placed the phone on the coffee table in front of her. Knowing that standing next to her and pestering her to make the call wouldn't be beneficial, they just went back upstairs to leave her to her thoughts and hopefully do the right thing.

A few hours later and Rose made her way downstairs to check on her as it had been so quiet in the house - much like it had been the day before.

When she entered the living room she saw Maddie pouting at the phone with eyes full of unshed tears, and she looked pitiful enough that Rose told her she could get up again.

Maddie ran to her room and shut the door, then threw herself down on her bed once more.

"Did she call him?" Emmett asked as he came down the stairs a few moments later.

"No. She was pouting and about to cry again and I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon."

"What about our holidays together?" he asked, and his voice was a little whiny. He didn't want to spend the rest of their vacation with Maddie crying in her room instead of having fun - and the atmosphere in the house was depressing and awkward and there was no way they could endure any longer. How was Maddie supposed to enjoy the next few days feeling so miserable – how was _he_ supposed to enjoy anything while he knew she was suffering? And Rose was anxious and tense … she suffered just as much as he did.

"Well, they will be just like today until Carlisle and Esme arrive," Rose replied, letting out a sad sigh.

"Can we at least take her hunting now? I'm sure she'll feel as good as new after she had some good, old bear blood. That stuff is like medicine, Rose," he told her. They needed to help Maddie, and they needed something to do. Just sitting around, waiting for something to happen, appeared to make everything worse.

But he didn't need to convince Rose that they should go hunting - she wasn't the one who needed to feed. They had to get some fresh blood into their little sister to make her feel better and help her keep control over her instincts, but she wasn't willing to leave the house to go on a hunt.

"Emmett, she refused. She already told you five times that she doesn't want to."

"But she needs to drink something!" he countered and groaned in frustration as he raked his fingers through his hair in agitation about the situation. It was horrible feeling so helpless, so powerless.

"Yes ..., but you know she can be difficult. Let's just hope she isn't trying to starve herself now."

_Starve herself?_ Despite the fact that it wasn't possible for them to starve, he definitely wouldn't allow his sister to even try. The pain in her throat would become torturing to the point that it was impossible to endure, and she would lose control eventually. He didn't want her to suffer or develop self-destructive tendencies - no, he wouldn't let that happen. "All that because she has trouble dealing with her guilt, but doesn't want to call Dad?"

"I think so."

"And that's why she doesn't even want _bear_?" He seemed unable to grasp that. He blinked his eyes in confusion and crossed his arms over his chest while he looked like he was trying to come up with a solution.

He felt for Maddie as he had been in similar situations before. Confessing was the right thing to do, it would help with the guilt - but nobody liked to disappoint people and face punishment on top of that. It was quite obvious that she was trying to deal with it herself now as she couldn't get herself to make the call. Or maybe she thought she deserved to feel so miserable and wanted to suffer even more. Whatever it was, she forbid herself from having any fun and refused to drink something that would make her feel better and mitigate the burning in her throat. No blood, no fun, no nothing.

They couldn't let her punish herself, Emmett decided, especially because it might get dangerous as she was using up all the blood she had - and then she was risking losing control over her bloodlust. And Emmett wouldn't let her punish herself because she was his little sister and he wanted her to be cheerful and happy again.

"You know what? It's enough," he suddenly said and looked at his wife, determination written all over his face.

She made a gesture with her hand to tell him to continue, hoping he would enlighten her about what he was getting at.

"This will end tonight," he whispered with narrowed eyes. "I will make sure of that."

And then he stomped off and in the direction of Maddie's room, pushing up the right sleeve of his shirt.

* * *

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	18. Chapter 18

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* * *

_I will follow through with this, it's the right thing to do._

Emmett tried to hold onto this thread of determination as he walked down the hallway and to the door of his sister's room, knowing that she was sitting on her bed, feeling downright miserable. She needed help to get rid of her guilt and become her normal self again, and he was the one who would help her.

He was prepared to spank the guilt out of her, no matter how long it would take or how hard he needed to hit. No, he would not stop until he was completely sure she was herself again ... there was no way he would stop before she had reached that point of letting go of everything.

She needed him to be there for her and be a strong, big brother … well, she would get that on top of a sore behind, that was for sure.

And … and he would ignore her pleas! Uh-huh!

She could plead with him, yell and cry and scream, he would ignore it and just continue spanking her until she was a sobbing mess and completely free of guilt again.

Yup, nothing could hold him back. Once he made up his mind, he would stick to his decision - no turning back, no. Nuh-uh. Never.

He stood in front of Maddie's room, reaching for the door handle but then lowered his hand again. That had been going on for a minute now, and he still hadn't entered.

_But boy, would she get it! She'd get it good. _

He wouldn't even discuss it, he was the one in charge here, not Maddie! He'd just barge into the room, haul her over his lap and then spank her little hiney good and proper. And she wouldn't sit anytime soon, he'd make sure of that. She'll be begging him to go hunting afterwards! Yup, that's how hard he would spank her.

For the umpteenth time he reached for the door handle, but then a sniffling sound coming from inside the room made him drop his hand back to his side.

_She was crying already … and she sounded so pitiful ..._

He squinted his eyes shut and winced as he heard her snuffling again – it was like the sound of her crying was causing him physical pain.

But he needed to do something! He wouldn't be able to endure this for the next five days until Carlisle and Esme would finally arrive …

Fortifying himself and his resolve, he reached for the door handle again when a mental picture of her lying curled up on her bed formed in his mind. She was hugging a pillow to her chest and cried, cried, cried ...

Oh, no ... he wasn't sure if he would be able to endure hearing her cry when he was the one inflicting physical pain on her. Maybe he could force himself to give her one smack … but that would be it. And it certainly wouldn't be enough to cure her from her self-destructive behaviour and the crushing guilt she was feeling.

Oh God … he felt like he just failed her, and himself as well.

He leaned with his forehead against the wall next to the door and tried to gather up the courage to spank her regardless. This wasn't about him, so he should just ignore his doubts and worries.

But he couldn't.

This was a horrible situation … and he didn't know what to do.

Waiting for Carlisle to arrive wasn't an option - neither for them nor for Maddie as she clearly dreaded his arrival. She even dreaded calling him – which was one of the main problems here. But he also didn't want her to make the call, because she'd just continue to feel bad for a lot longer than if they would take care of this. And Carlisle and Esme's vacation would start out pretty bad if they would be confronted with the task of punishing the girl the moment they would arrive. Plus Maddie wouldn't be happy to see them … could they do that to them? Could he let that happen?

He pushed away from the wall and shook his head as he had no idea what to do.

With his head bowed, he slowly walked back in the direction of the living room, stopping as he reached the end of the hallway.

He felt his wife's eyes on him, and as he lifted his head for a second to glance at her, he heard her sigh.

"Aw, baby. It's okay, come here," she said and offered her hand for him to take.

He walked over to her with a sad face, and when he was close enough, Rosalie took his hand in hers while he slumped down next to her.

"I just wanted to help her," he mumbled and leaned his head against her shoulder.

Rose suppressed a laugh, as Maddie probably wouldn't consider getting spanked as 'help'. But it would indeed relieve her of her guilt, so he was right in a way.

"Emmy, it's not our place to take care of her punishment. Just wait until Carlisle and Esme arrive."

He groaned. "But that's exactly what I can't do. See how miserable she is? It's mean to let her suffer for another five days, and it makes me feel miserable and guilty as well."

"She just needs to make the call," Rose said and looked sideways at him, waiting for him to just pick up the phone and bring it to Maddie.

He suddenly sat up straight and his eyes lit up as he got an idea he needed to share. "And ... and how about we make the call? We try to tell Carlisle what happened and then we hand Maddie the phone."

"No, we can't do that." Rose shook her head as she said that.

Emmett didn't seem to like that answer – and he didn't seem to understand why she didn't deem his idea brilliant. "… but why?"

"Because first of all, she needs to take responsibility for her actions and I'm sure Carlisle would want to hear it from her - he would expect it," she explained, but Emmett didn't look like he would accept it without arguing. "And second of all, Emmett, she's old enough to know what she's doing - she actively made the decision to manipulate you and deceive us. Besides ... I don't want her to feel like we ratted her out, I don't want her to feel betrayed."

"Oh." He, too, didn't want Maddie to think that they ratted her out, so it appeared that Rose had a valid point.

"We cannot make the call, Emmett," she told him when he started to frown, trying to keep him from making up new solutions to this problem. There was nothing they could do and she wanted him to accept that.

His shoulders slumped and he let out a groan. "But we need to do something."

"It's up to her to do something, like _making the call_."

"But …," he uttered before looking at her again, his eyes wide now. "But aren't we responsible for her well being? She is suffering and refuses to feed ... we cannot let her go without blood for that long when she clearly needs it. The pain in her throat is rapidly getting worse."

"You're right, but-" "We live so close to humans here at the lake ... that's a huge risk we are taking, Rose," he interrupted her, because he felt that it was important to point that out. It was one of Carlisle's ground rules that all of them had to feed regularly so they wouldn't endanger any humans.

"Well, what do you want me to say? I cannot change it."

"Do something."

"Do something?" She frowned at hearing him say that. "Do what?"

He just looked at her, slowly raising his eyebrows while his gaze intensified.

"Oh, no," she said, letting out a laugh of disbelief while holding up her hands.

"Yes," he replied, confirming her assumption.

"No ... if you think this is the right course of action, then do it yourself. Keep me out of this," she said and folded her arms over her chest while looking away from him.

"Rose! I tried, but I can't do it! Come on ... do you want her to get even worse? She needs to feed and if this is the only way ..."

She shook her head before fixing her gaze on him once more. "Emmett, that's insane."

He shifted in his seat to be able to face her completely, and he took both her hands in his. "Just think about it: She isn't herself anymore, she needs help. And it'll only take a minute. One minute, Rose, and _bibbidi bobbidi boo_ - she's as good as new!"

"Are you feverish, Emmett? You compare this situation with a kid's movie?I'm not a witch and I won't say a few magic words ... you expect me to _spank_ her!" she sounded disbelieving and even threw her hands in the air like she thought Emmett had lost his mind.

"Yeah, it's brilliant, isn't it? You know it'll work," he said confidently and nodded his head.

"But why me?"

"Why not? You know she respects you more than anyone. She listens to you, she _trusts_ you. It's been like that right from the beginning – you had a close bond even before she was turned."

After rolling her eyes, she just leaned back against the backrest of the couch and crossed her legs. "So? I don't have the authority to do something like that. Carlisle is the -"

"But he's not here! When he's not around, we are in charge, Rosie."

If Emmett was starting to make a habit of interrupting her, she would get up and leave. She huffed in agitation – but also because what he wanted her to do was making her nervous. "Emmett, are you aware of what you are asking? You want me to give her a spanking - something that you can't even do yourself. Besides, I couldn't just walk in there and expect her to comply, this is just absurd. We'll wait until Carlisle arrives."

"What if ... what if she agrees? That would be okay, wouldn't it? It's not like we force her, and that way she still has her choice, so she wouldn't feel betrayed or belittled or the like. And that way Carlisle wouldn't even have to know what happened, because the matter has been taken care of. We need to do _something_, Rose. It'll only get worse until she can't take it anymore. This is too much pressure for her, she doesn't know how to deal with it. She's starving herself, Rose," he told her in a pleading tone while watching her contemplate his words.

Well, Rose had to admit that if Maddie agreed, it would be a whole different matter. She had given her a few smacks before ... maybe she could really get herself to do this. They could only offer, and it would be her choice what she wanted to do. Call Carlisle, wait for him to arrive or accept punishment from Emmett and her.

Rose really wasn't interested in being a disciplinarian and she didn't want to risk her relationship with her sister. She didn't want her to feel that everyone in the family had that much authority over her and could punish her while she was a child that was expected to obey. Also, she would have to cause her sister physical pain and despite her tears, continue until she felt that Maddie had enough. It would work, she knew that … but was it worth it? Worth risking their relationship?

* * *

As Rose entered Maddie's room, she immediately headed for the bed and sat down.

Maddie, currently busying herself with folding a tissue to blow her nose, didn't pay much attention to her sister, until ...

"Bend over."

Her eyes widened in shock as she stared at Rose in utter disbelief. "Huh?" she asked, pretty sure she hadn't heard right.

"Um," Rose said and groaned, then raked her fingers through her hair in a perfect imitation of Carlisle when he was stressed out. "Maddie, come and sit with me."

So Maddie blew her nose, then threw the tissue into the wastebasket before walking over to her bed and sitting down next to her.

"How are you feeling?" Rose asked and looked at her, noticing venom stains on the front of her shirt. Another t-shirt ruined beyond repair – at least she was wearing what Alice had gotten for her and not some shirts that were special to her.

Maddie rubbed at her left eye while replying, "Fine."

"You don't look fine. You need to feed, Maddie."

"No," she breathed and shook her head, but didn't look at Rose.

"You love black bear, come on. It'll make you feel better," she tried again, hoping she could get her to hunt, so she wouldn't have to follow through with Emmett's plan. The fresh blood would calm her and make her feel more at ease, and then she might be willing to give Carlisle a call.

"I'm not thirsty."

"Sorry, I don't believe you."

She realised that Maddie's well-being had top priority right now. Her skin wasn't flushed like it usually was and her eyes weren't of a bright honey-colour – it was weird seeing her like that. They needed to get blood into her, soon, and they needed her to feel better. It was their responsibility to care for her, and it got more and more difficult for them to actually do so.

Maddie snuffled, then replied, "I don't care."

Fine, so they wouldn't get anywhere with this. Time for the next step.

"I want you to make a decision."

As Maddie's eyes teared up again, Rose groaned internally at seeing that Emmett was so right. They needed to end this, it was getting too much to endure - for Maddie and for them. "I'll give you another option, so I want you to listen closely. Take your time and think about it. It's up to you, understood?"

"... okay?"

"All right, here's the thing: We cannot have you starving yourself and we cannot have you beating yourself up over what happened. You are feeling guilty and don't know how to deal with it - you obviously don't, because you chose to do something we cannot tolerate. Refusing to feed is not an option. It isn't helping you or us, and it certainly isn't helping the humans surrounding us. We are not willing to take that risk," Rose told her in a voice that would brook no argument.

Maddie looked at her with a questioning look in her eyes - she had no clue what Rose was getting at. But there was no way she could call Carlisle.

"Keeping up so far?"

"Uh-huh."

"Perfect. Now, we don't think that it's advisable to keep you feeling guilty and ashamed until Carlisle and Esme arrive. It wouldn't be fair to subject you to a harsh punishment by them when you are already punishing yourself."

"So … we just forget about everything and pretend it never happened?" Maddie asked hesitantly. On the one hand it was great to hear that Carlisle wouldn't be informed ... but on the other hand she felt that it wouldn't be fair to Emmett. She had offended him and felt awful because of it - letting it slide would downplay it, like she didn't care about him or what she had done.

"Definitely not," Rose said and shook her head. "That isn't something we can forget about. Maddie, we need to make sure you think before you act. And I think - if you are being really honest with yourself - you don't feel forgiven even though Emmett told you that you are."

Maddie looked at the floor, trying to figure out what was in store for her now.

"It doesn't go away ... it just gets worse, Rose," she whispered, trying to explain what her guilt was doing to her. She had never felt that bad in her life, this was torturing her. _How could she ever consider doing that to Em?_

"That's what living in a coven does to you. There has to be justice, consequences of transgressions, and you don't feel that it would be right to let this slide."

"What now?"

Holding up three fingers, Rosalie said, "You have three options. You already know the first two, which actually come to the same result: Carlisle will take care of this. You either call him yourself, or you wait until he and Esme arrive and we will tell him. The second option isn't really advisable, but it is an option nonetheless."

Maddie nodded her head - not because she considered any of these options, but because she agreed that keeping this from Carlisle until he would arrive wasn't smart, as he would be more than just a little displeased.

"Emmett and I have talked and decided, that maybe there's one more thing we could offer you as something needs to be done. You cannot go on refusing to feed or have any fun - it's making all of us miserable and that's not just. You acted out under our watch, you ignored our rules and that's why it wouldn't be too far fetched if we would be the ones to punish you."

A gasp escaped Maddie's lips as she listened to her sister explain to her what her third option would be.

"What would you do?" she asked carefully while giving her a sceptical look.

"I give you a spanking, of course."

As inconspicuous as possible, Maddie started to scoot away from Rose.

"What? Do you expect me to just haul you over my lap and beat you with a belt?" she asked when she noticed what her sister was doing. She snorted before she went on. "Don't be ridiculous. Emmett and I decided we would give you this option, but it's up to you. I don't want you to make a rash decision. Take you time and think about it, all right? But rest assured, we won't make this a habit. This is a one time offer, I won't start disciplining you on a regular basis. If you act up again, you have to answer to Carlisle and Esme, okay?"

Then she stood up from the bed and looked back at Maddie over her shoulder. "I'll leave you to your thoughts now."

Rose had no clue what Maddie would decide. She could only offer, even though she would prefer for Maddie to call Carlisle. But if she couldn't do it because she was scared, then she would follow through with it. They couldn't let her suffer and Rose would willingly suffer for her to make sure she was fine. So she would actually take the burden of causing her little sister pain to help her overcome her own pain. It sounded quite weird, but that was exactly what would happen if she chose to accept punishment from her.

Rose reached the door and opened it, then stepped outside to let Maddie think it through. She wanted her to really make up her mind, think about it and make a decision that would be right for her.

She stepped out into the hallway and pulled the door close behind her, but before it could click shut, Maddie's voice rang out. "Wait!" she called, and Rose opened the door again to look at her.

Maybe she needed more info?

"Yes?"

Maddie cleared her throat, then looked up at Rose and said, "I want you to do it."

Rose felt a frown appear on her face as she stared back at her little sister shifting uncomfortably under her gaze. She looked shy, and quite spent after all the crying she had done today and the day before, and that's why Rose had her doubts about it.

"Me? You choose me?"

"Uh-huh."

Sighing. "Maddie, think about it. Take your time and really think about it. We won't pester you, take as long as you need."

"But I'm sure. I-I ... I want you to do it," she said and bit her lip. "I choose you."

Rose sighed again and shook her head. "You're not listening to me. Take your time, I want you to be sure. Once you make a decision, I will hold you to that," Rose said and left the room.

She couldn't let her sister make such a decision without spending at least a few minutes thinking about it. She needed her to be sure, to be certain that this was indeed what she wanted, because once Rose would start spanking her, she wouldn't stop and let Maddie change her mind. That was not going to happen. Maddie needed to start learning to take responsibility for her actions and her decisions.

"Did you tell her?" Emmett asked and stood up from the couch as his wife entered the living room. He looked nervous as he stood there, his hands buried deep in the front pockets of his jeans.

"Yes. She thinks she's ready, but I told her to think about it again."

"What did she choose?"

"What do you think, hm?" she asked, then sat down on the couch. Emmett seated himself next to her and grabbed her hand. "I'm not sure that's what she wants."

"She chose you," Emmett said knowingly.

Rose exhaled slowly before nodding her head.

"I'm sorry, Rose," Emmett mumbled.

She looked at him with a frown. "What are you sorry for? It was your idea, Em. You were hoping she would choose that option."

"But I did not mean to put that much stress on you, Rosie. I shouldn't have asked you to -"

"We're a team, Em. I know you couldn't do it and that's okay. I know that I'm capable of punishing her, I'm ... I'm just worried."

"About what?" he queried, rubbing her hand in a soothing manner.

"I don't want it to change anything, change the way she sees me. I know she trusts me and I'm nervous that I'm putting that trust on the line."

"Rosie," Emmett said and put his large hands on either side of her beautiful face. "I think it's a display of her trust by choosing you. She knows you're doing it for her and she knows you would never do anything to harm her. That won't change."

Rose's eyes seemed to become a little watery as she looked back into his warm, golden eyes. She could only hope her sister trusted her as much as she trusted Emmett. "There's no guarantee for that."

"Rose?" Maddie's thin voice sounded over to them from her room, interrupting them.

Rose closed her eyes for a brief moment, feeling Emmett's thumbs stroke over her cheekbones and his lips press against her forehead, before she looked at him again and saw her husband giving her an encouraging smile.

She stood up and after taking a little breath to steady her nerves, she turned around and headed for Maddie's room.

The door was ajar, and when she entered, the girl was standing in the middle of the room, her eyes large and dark. She was nervous and really needed to feed, Rose thought, while entering and closing the door behind her.

"Come," she said and motioned for Maddie to take a seat on the bed just as she sat down as well.

Maddie seated herself next to her, close enough that their arms touched and they could basically lean against each other.

"Are you sure you are ready to make a decision?" Rose asked, looking sideways at her to see if she would fidget or hesitate. If she would, then it was a sign that she wasn't ready.

"Yes," Maddie said and looked at her folded hands in her lap.

Rose put her hand over Maddie's to get her attention, and when she lifted her head and looked her in the eye, she said, "Then tell me."

"You."

Suppressing a sigh, Rosalie tilted her head to the side and asked softly, "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Maddie ... could you tell me why?" Rose wanted to make sure Maddie had thought about it and was aware what was going to happen - and she wanted to make sure the girl wasn't afraid of her or would mistrust her now. She also hoped she didn't choose her because she hoped she'd go easier on her than Carlisle would. But that was actually quite ridiculous … Maddie wasn't looking for lenience.

"Because you know what happened. I offended Emmett and you, and ... and I don't think I can wait until Mom and Dad arrive. I can't stand myself anymore."

"Don't say that."

"I wanna forget about what I've done ... I would try to make myself forget, but I can't look at myself in the mirror," Maddie admitted and rubbed at her eyes, then pressed her lips together to keep herself from crying.

"Really?" That did sound bad, like she loathed herself for having betrayed their trust. Her guilt and shame was indeed crushing her and Rose was almost glad Emmett had convinced her to deal with her punishment now and not wait for their parents' arrival.

Maddie nodded her head, but she wasn't sure if Rose was shocked about her mentioning to make herself forget or the fact that she couldn't stand to look at herself.

"Come here," Rose said and pulled her in for a hug. Surprisingly Maddie did not pull away, she even leaned her head against her shoulder. "You made a mistake, you made a bad decision. But that doesn't make you a bad person."

She felt her shaking in her arms, so she rubbed her back in an attempt to calm her. She really was a picture of misery … but not for much longer.

Rose loosened the embrace and leaned back, her arms still around her as she looked her in the eye. "Are you really sure, Maddie?"

Rose wanted to get it over with as she knew she could sit here and hold her for hours – as soon as she would leave the room, Maddie would go back to feeling guilty and hating herself and, of course, starving herself.

"Uh-huh."

"Because if you have any doubts, then please tell me now. Once I start, I won't let you change your mind anymore, do you understand? I'm serious. You need to stick to your decision, like it or not."

"I know." Had Rose ever been not serious when she said something? Maddie was aware of what that entailed, and she knew that she would soon be getting a spanking. Urgh, it had been a little while since the last time and she wasn't looking forward to what would happen next. But Rose was still Rose, and she trusted her to be there for her when it was over. It was a good feeling knowing that this horrible situation would soon be completely forgiven, and she could look forward to spending the last few days enjoying her time with only Rose and Em. She felt that this 'problem' was standing between them, and it was good that they would take care of it now.

It would be kinda weird getting punished by her Dad for something that had happened a week ago and he hadn't even been here with them and didn't really know what exactly had taken place in his absence. Besides, he was always working so much, that Maddie didn't want to spend the time he would have for her lying over his knees. She wanted to go swimming and running and hunting. And she and Emmett wanted to teach him how to become a real gamer.

"Oh Maddie, ... I haven't even started yet and you're already crying," Rose said as she brushed a little bit of venom off her cheek with her thumb. She stood up to get a tissue, wiped the venom off and handed it to Maddie to clean the remaining tears away.

"I think it just didn't stop," Maddie told her and mopped up the tears on her face.

"You're not scared of me, are you?"

Maddie let out a short laugh that sounded a little like hiccup while wiping at her eyes. "... no?"

Maddie had to admit that she was a little nervous … sure, who wouldn't be? But she wasn't scared of Rose - Rose was only scary when she went all vampire on someone and hissed and growled and yelled. But Rose was talking to her calmly, hugging her and it was - despite the circumstances and what loomed over Maddie - a comfortable atmosphere.

Rose felt a little silly now about asking that question - but at least it had amused the girl.

Just sitting here, talking, seemed to have made her feel better. She was glad they could talk like that and she had the feeling that Maddie felt safe with her. The girl knew that the discipline that would soon be dished out by her was in her best interest, and that she didn't really want to do it, but swallowed down her unwillingness so all of them could put this behind themselves.

It was time. There was no need to talk about what she had done wrong or reprimand her, they only needed to get it over with. Why not choose this moment to do so?

Rose motioned for Maddie to get up and stand before her, then guided her over her lap. Maddie hadn't resisted, and it showed Rose that she was indeed sure about the choice she had made. But now Rose had to had to admit that she wasn't completely sure how to do this. She shifted her a little to the side on her lap, then pulled her closer to herself and wrapped her arm around her waist. She let go of her waist again and shifted her a little higher, trying to find a position that would be more or less comfortable for both of them.

"Are you finished?" Maddie asked when being pushed around was starting to make her feel like an idiot.

"Don't be sassy, this isn't the best position to talk to someone like that, don't you think?" Rose snapped, because she was annoyed with herself for being so unskilful, then tightened her grip around Maddie's waist - this time making sure not to move her again so that Maddie would realise they were about to start.

"Sorry."

"All right, I'll start now," Rose announced while raising her right hand high in the air. She didn't let it fall immediately because she couldn't help but feel hesitant for a moment, unsure about how to do this.

But then she took a deep breath to steady her resolve and let her hand crash onto Maddie's upturned bottom. A resounding smack could be heard, followed by a gasp from Maddie.

Rose looked at her hand, surprised at what effect that simple smack had on her sister, especially because she hadn't pulled her shorts or her underwear down. Both were thin pieces of clothing, and she wouldn't feel comfortable smacking her on her bare behind, so she figured they could do it just as well over the clothes. And now she saw that it worked perfectly.

She let her hand fall again, several times, and soon found a steady rhythm.

Maddie kept silent, trying to remain stoic in front of Rose, but after a dozen slaps that resolution faltered and she let out little yelps as she squirmed around on Rose's lap. Fresh tears welled up in her eyes as she could feel the burning on her buttocks increase, growing more and more painful with each time Rose's hand landed forcefully on her behind.

"Rose, please!" Maddie whined while trying to squirm off her sister's lap. She couldn't help it, her butt was on fire! But Rose only clutched her waist harder, making it next to impossible for Maddie to move.

"Please nothing," Rose replied strictly while continuing to pepper up her little bottom. "You knew what to expect once you made your choice, so don't you complain to me about it." She would decide when this would be over, not the little one.

When the pain on her behind matched the horrible churning in her stomach, that had been caused by the heavy guilt that encompassed her for about two days now, she felt how her body gave way to the tears and sobs.

She barely heard the loud slapping sounds anymore as she was letting go of all the guilt and shame by crying it all out, when suddenly she felt being shifted forwards.

And then it got really bad.

Her shorts weren't long enough to cover the upper part of her thighs, so Rosalie was striking her bare skin now. The slaps sounded sharper, and the burning was fiercer on that unprotected area.

Pressing her lips tightly together, Rose had to concentrate on doling out the last few slaps and not end this too early. It was awful to make the girl cry and it was awful that it wasn't over yet. But she gave her the last four in very quick succession, then let out a breath she hadn't realised she had been holding.

It was over and finally she could breathe freely again. For a short moment she closed her eyes while she loosened her grip on Maddie's waist and started to rub soothing circles on her back, but she caught her breath as she noticed that Maddie's crying did neither cease nor calm.

Maybe it had been wrong to do this after all ... had she lost her trust? Was Maddie afraid of her now or loathed her for causing her pain? What was she supposed to do now?

"Sshh, it's over, Maddie. You're okay, it's over," she heard herself say. Words meant to calm her, to show her that she cared, but she felt so awkward and helpless.

Maddie was shaking as sob after sob escaped her lips, and she didn't make a move to get up.

So Rose continued to rub her back and say soothing things, until she noticed Maddie wiping at her eyes, then looking back at her over her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Rosie," she whispered and put her hands on the bed to push herself up from Rose's knees.

Rose helped her, steadied her as she seemed to be a little weak right now, and when Maddie was standing in front of her and she stood as well, she suddenly felt the air being knocked from her lungs as Maddie flung her arms around her and cried into her shirt.

So she trusted her after all and didn't push her away or hate her for having done this – Rose couldn't be any more relieved than she was at that moment.

"Come, lie down," she said and pried Maddie's fingers from her shirt, then helped her lie down on her side on the bed.

She got a few tissues, then sat down next to Maddie and wiped her tears away in a loving manner. Maddie took them from her and cleaned the venom away from under her nose, while Rose let her fingers run through her little sister's hair to calm her some more.

"I'm sorry."

"You're forgiven, little one, don't mention it again. It's in the past now," Rose told her, never stopping to stroke her dark hair.

And indeed, Maddie's crying stopped completely. She wiped the last venom tears from her eyes, and then looked up at Rose through dark eyes.

"How are you feeling, hm?" Rose asked, eyeing the girl from head to toe to check if she was shaking or showing any signs of discomfort of being close to her. She wanted to tell her that they wouldn't keep this from their parents ... but it was a little too early for that. She would only worry again, even though they would make sure she wouldn't be in trouble ... and right now it wasn't important.

"My butt hurts."

Rose smirked. "My hand hurts."

"I think it's your fault ... maybe you hit too hard," Maddie mused, a little twinkle in her eye.

A laugh rang out as Rosalie watched her sister becoming her old self again right in front of her eyes.

"I don't think so. You knew I wouldn't give you just a few love taps and be done with it. Now ... how are you feeling? Well, apart from having a smarting behind _that. you. deserved._?" she asked with a fake growl while poking her in the chest.

Maddie smirked and curled her fingers around her index finger to stop the assault, then said with a shrug of her shoulders, "I dunno ... kinda exhausted, I guess."

"... and?"

"Hm ... I feel like I could drain five bears ... or maybe six or seven, depends on how big they are."

And one of Rose's biggest worries was vanishing into thin air. Maddie wanted to hunt again. She was thirsty and she had a craving for bear - oh, Emmett would be overjoyed.

"Would you like to go on a hunt now?" Rose queried and made to get up from the bed.

"I wanna go see Emmett first."

"That's a great idea. He's upstairs ... probably wearing headphones while playing some racing game."

"Okay," Maddie said and crawled off the bed, then rubbed at her bottom but tried to make it look inconspicuous. She gave Rose a little smile before turning around and leaving her room, heading for the living room.

She moved carefully as her butt was sore, then she tiptoed up the stairs and walked down the hallway, when she suddenly heard clicking sounds coming from their 'game room'. Rose was right - he was playing.

She just peeked into the room, expecting to see her brother lying on his stomach on the bed, wearing headphones and hitting the buttons on the controller.

Weirdly enough, he reached down and picked up another controller from the floor, then held it out in her direction. He hadn't even taken his eyes off the TV and he was still wearing headphones, but he must have noticed her regardless.

She smirked a little at seeing that he invited her to play with him, then walked into the room and threw herself down on the bed next to him - on her stomach, of course.

Grabbing the controller from his hands, she just looked sideways at him until he took the headphones off and pulled the plug out.

"You need to press start, Tiny," he said like she was a little dense, and when she did he suddenly gave a cheer and smiled at her. Ha, he knew it! That had worked like a charm, just like he had told Rose!

Maddie looked at him with wide eyes, surprised at his great mood, and he just put and arm around her and pulled her close.

"May I say that you look better?"

"Careful, my ass hurts," she said, hoping he wouldn't get the idea to wrestle with her or something.

"How are you?" he asked while letting go of her, careful not to cause her any discomfort.

She just shrugged her shoulders while choosing a cool car to race against him with.

"Did Rosie spank you for being naughty?"

She gasped. "Emmy!"

The look she gave him cracked him up. "What? Did she or didn't she?"

"Like you didn't hear what happened … I thought she would never stop."

"Aww, that happens when you're naughty," he said teasingly.

"Ugh, stop using that word, you know I hate it!"

And he just grinned at her until she groaned and buried her face in the comforter on the bed.

"So, tell me … what did you learn today?"

"Never manipulate family because it's wrong … and switching the phones off is also wrong."

"And driving awesome cars without a licence … you should have called us," he told her while ruffling her hair.

She looked up at him. "But … the phones were switched off. How could I have possibly called you?" she asked and blinked at him in confusion.

He sucked in a breath while thinking about it. "You're right … better not tell Rose, kay?" Rosalie wouldn't see that as a valid reason for Maddie to take someone's car for a spin as she had been the one who had manipulated the phones. If Maddie brought it up, Rose would scold her .. and that wouldn't be any fun.

"Uh-huh," Maddie replied and unconsciously rubbed at her sore backside.

For not having much spanking experience Rose did a pretty good job. Maddie's butt was smarting quite a bit … and she didn't want a repeat of that.

While Emmett busied himself with choosing a car, she nudged him in the side to get his attention and said, "I'm sorry, Emmy."

"About what? See? Nothing to be sorry about," he replied and winked at her.

"But listen! I'm really sorry about -" "I have no clue what you're talking about."

She grew frustrated with him. "But-" "Mad, it's okay, it's completely forgiven. Come on, stop apologising."

Seeing that he obviously didn't want to hear it because it was in the past, she nodded her head to show that she understood. "... okay," she said hesitantly, then focussed on the TV as Emmett had started the game. But suddenly he pressed pause and cleared his throat.

"Well, there's one thing I'd like to know ..."

"Yeah?" she asked, eager to help him with whatever question he might have.

"It was pretty tough getting into my head, right? It wasn't like making Edward do something, am I right?"

She stared at him, then knew what she had to do. "Oh, you better believe it! Edward is ridiculously easy … but it was really complicated making you do something, urgh. Something's obviously wrong with your head!"

He grinned at that, knowing that she wasn't serious, and then they continued to play until Emmett pressed pause again.

"I'm thirsty, I think we should go hunting. Are you thirsty, Tiny?" he asked casually and glanced at her.

"I am," she admitted and fumbled with the controller in her hands.

"Great! I'm in the mood for … bear! Let's go bear hunting, come on!" he said and made to get up from the bed.

"I ..."

He stopped his movements and looked at her. "What?"

She bit her lip, before motioning for him to come closer. He leaned toward her and she brushed a lock of his hair away to whisper in his ear. "I'm thirsty but I can't move too much right now."

He glanced at her butt and she nodded.

"I catch 'em, you drain 'em. Deal?" He so hoped she would agree, because she needed to recuperate. And he didn't want to let her out of his sight while she still wasn't completely well, but he needed to see Rose and make sure she was fine. This had been incredibly difficult for her, but she had followed through with it, for him and for Maddie.

Her eyes lit up and she nodded her head, a big smile on her face.

"Great! Wanna watch a movie afterwards?" he asked and took the controller from her hands.

"Which one?" she asked with a frown as he reached under the bed.

She heard him pick something up, and a second later a dvd was lying in front of her.

"Huh? The Jungle Book?" Disney movies were awesome, but she didn't know why he chose that particular one.

"_Look for the bare necessities, the simple bare necessities, forget about your worries and your strife …,_" he sang, making her laugh out loud and jump up from the bed.

"All right, _Baloo_!" she called and he smirked, then grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder.

She was in the perfect position to scratch his back and so he exclaimed, "Scratch, _Mowgli_!"

She snorted. "You can rub your bum on a tree," she told him and giggled.

"How about you rub your bum on a tree?" he asked and gave her a light pat on her behind while carrying her out of the room and in the direction of the stairs.

Her eyes went wide as the pain flared up for a brief moment and she shook her head vehemently. "Nuh-uh!"

* * *

**There you go, guys, that was the chapter you've been waiting for (even though I didn't know where to stop!). I could end the story now, but .. I have a few more chapters on my computer. Is it okay for you if I continue? Just a few more chapters, so you can find out why I called the story 'A memorable summer' ;-)**

** Yes? No?**

**Please review! And I'm curious to know what you think of this chapter, of course!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Hey there!**

**Thank you for your reviews and because you don't mind a few more chapters ... here is the next one!**

* * *

Rose and Emmett stood off to the side, about thirty feet from Maddie while watching her suck on a deep wound on the neck of an angry, black bear. It was her second one as the first one Emmett had caught for her wasn't big enough to satiate her thirst.

With every mouthful of warm bear blood she swallowed, they could see how the colour returned to her cheeks - a soft, rosy flush that made her look much healthier and more inconspicuous to humans. Rose noticed that she felt a lot better as she greedily tried to suck as much blood as possible from the ruptured carotid.

"Just look how much she needed that blood ... I cannot imagine how much pain she must have been in during the last few days." She wasn't completely sure as she had never before lost a limp, but the worst pain a vampire could ever experience was definitely the pain of thirst. It was maddening and could get that strong and overpowering, that the thirst and the need to feed would eliminate every coherent thought - the vampire would become a puppet to its own basic instincts. She hadn't experienced it yet, and she would make damn sure it would never happen to her or any member of her family.

"No need to worry about that anymore, she's feeding now," Emmett replied casually and put an arm around her shoulders.

"Yes, I'm glad she is," Rose said and glanced at him before directing her gaze back at Maddie who was now hugging the bear even closer to herself as she drank.

"What?" Emmett asked as he had noticed the glance she had given her. He had detected a strange look in her eyes as she had done so, and he wanted to know the meaning of it.

"I was so hesitant about what you asked me to do ... and now I see that it had been the right thing - for her. She was ready to accept her punishment, and making her wait for it for a whole week would have been cruel. She's gulping the blood down like she hadn't fed for ages," she explained, sounding quite guilty, as she watched her sister and the big bear, that suddenly stopped struggling and then lay limp in Maddie's arms.

"Told you, babe," he said and ran his hand up and down her upper arm.

She nodded her head, before admitting in a soft voice, "You know ... I've been really scared."

"About her hating you? Fearing you? Ha, that will never happen." He chuckled. "Why would she lose her trust in you, when she was the one who made the choice? That's just silly, Rosie."

"Glad that you find this so amusing ...," she grumbled, giving him a dark look.

He laughed and gave her a smacking kiss on the cheek. "Aww, you know I love you, babe. I'm not laughing about your fears ... believe it or not, even I was a little scared and that's why I hadn't been able to do it. It wasn't fair of me to ask something like that of you and I'm sorry, but at least it's over now and Carlisle and Esme won't have to know."

She looked at him in bewilderment. "Emmett, we won't lie to them."

"I know, we just won't mention it," he replied with a shrug and winked at her.

Clearing her throat, she said, "No, Emmett. That isn't something we should keep from them. And it wouldn't exactly teach her honesty, don't you think? They have to know, and I'm sure they wouldn't want her to develop self-mutilating behaviour whenever she feels guilty. Just look how thirsty she was and - _Maddie, stop that!_" she suddenly called and shook her head at the girl, who had just burped heartily.

"Excuse me," Maddie said, but grinned like she had burped on purpose and would do it again if she could.

Emmett let out a laugh. "Another one, Tiny?"

She puffed out her cheeks and let out her breath while thinking about it, then looked up at him and nestled against her latest feed. "No, thanks ... I think I'm full."

"You sure? Maybe something little as dessert? Come, let me catch something for you."

"Hm ... like what?" she asked, as she was a little curious what he had in mind. Little things normally didn't taste very good ... but she was always interested in trying something new.

"A bunny?"

She scrunched up her face at the thought of drinking rabbit blood. She felt full and satiated, the blood she just drank had tasted delicious ... but a bunny would surely ruin that with its bland, unalluring scent and flavour.

"No, thanks."

"A squirrel?"

"Urgh," she uttered and let herself fall onto her side, then covered her face with one of the big front paws of the bear.

"All right, no squirrel ... how about a -"

"Emmett, she's had enough," Rose said and placed a hand on his arm to get him to stop. "Maddie, get up and stop playing with the dead bear."

All she got in response was a soft giggle, but Maddie indeed let go of the bear.

"You know," the girl said while getting up from the ground and traipsing over to them, "we catch so many bears. We should skin them and put a few bear skin rugs in the house."

"No, no, no ... you know that Esme doesn't like anything bear-related in the house," Rose said and smirked as she placed an arm around her little sister's shoulders. "Just ask Emmett."

Maddie remembered the story and laughed when Emmett started to whistle and look away.

"Actually ... I still think that we should have kept the rug," he said after a moment and looked at Rose. "Just because there was still a little meat sticking to the skin ... she was completely overreacting."

"That wasn't just a 'little' meat, Em. Besides, it was already decaying and it smelled so bad."

"That was the odour of nature," he said with a huge grin and saw Maddie covering her mouth with both her hands to stiffle her giggles.

"No, I'm sure it was the odour of foulness and decay, Emmy," Rose replied matter-of-factly, then winked at him and smiled. It was great that they were having fun again and everybody was relaxed and happy.

* * *

After that fateful day, they had the best holidays ever. They went swimming again, rode their bikes and watched tons of movies. Emmett kicked Maddie's butt at some racing game, but Maddie didn't care because she kicked Rose's butt. Seriously, Rose sucked giant, hairy monkey balls at that game. Em played racing games all the time … why hadn't she ever played with him?

The day until Carlisle and Esme would arrive was inching closer and when Rose decided they should clean up a little to make the house look nice for their parents, Maddie asked if she could go outside to meet up with 'the porch-boy'. Emmett had dubbed him – he vehemently refused to call that human by his name.

She wasn't in the mood for cleaning up, and as she had spent the last few days with only Em and Rose, she thought it would be nice to get some fresh air and talk to someone else for a change.

And then a discussion broke out.

They asked her to stay inside, because the teenagers living around the lake or spending their holidays here weren't people she should be socialising with. They had always told her to be wary of strangers … and what she had done a few days ago was proof enough that some humans had a very bad influence on her. Besides, she was still kinda sorta grounded ... but not really. Maddie didn't get it herself.

But yes, she didn't give up because she thought it wasn't fair of them to make her stay inside. Rose and Emmett were being difficult again and she wasn't willing to endure their idiocy. She could go wherever she wanted, whenever she wanted, so who were they to tell her otherwise? Okay, fine ... she had screwed up big time and they were in charge, but they had told her that it was in the past and that there was no need to bring it up again … no need to dwell on it. And she didn't want to deceive them again and sneak out, so she just begged them until they would have to let her get her way.

It took her a few minutes to convince them to let her go outside for a while. Emmett hadn't been too enthusiastic about that idea, but Rose gave in after Maddie told them for the sixth time that the boy hadn't been with them in the car and hadn't been drinking. Plus, she would be staying nearby so they could find her in case something happened and she would only be gone for one hour.

Apart from that, she told them that these people were her age, and after she had been forced to spend a year in a class with nothing but thirteen year old girls, they should grant her a little bit normality and keep their noses out of her business. Maddie had left out the last part, of course, but Rose agreed to the first point she mentioned.

So Maddie cheered, hugged both of them, then ran to her room to change into clothes that wouldn't make her look silly. Seriously, Rose had packed way to many clothes Alice had bought for her.

When she emerged from her room a few minutes later, Emmett sat with his arms crossed over his chest and glowered at her, before he radiant smile made it impossible for him to keep it up - he started to smirk.

"... but we'll play Street Fighter tonight, right?" he asked after a moment and watched her putting on her shoes.

"Ha! Of course we'll play Street Fighter! I'm a gazillion times better at it than you are!"

"Excuse me? In your dreams, Tiny, only in your dreams …," he replied, holding up a hand in a typical 'Bitch, please'-fashion while looking in the opposite direction.

"You'll see!" She laughed and opened the door to step outside. "You better start practicing, Em! You only have one hour left until I kick your ass and make you cry."

"Get out of here already, Tiny, before I drag you upstairs to the game room," he playfully threatened, then waved his hand and she laughed again. She said bye to him and Rose and closed the door behind her.

As Maddie stepped onto the porch and closed the door, she could already see Chris walking towards her. He still wasn't anywhere near their house and since she didn't want to spend that one hour standing here waiting, she skipped down the few steps and walked along the tree line to meet him half way. It was a cloudy day, with only a little bit of rain, but since that type of weather made it possible for her to leave the house during daytime, she was actually quite excited about it. It was weird how people couldn't enjoy rain … not even Rose liked it. Because it would ruin her hair, she said. Weird that they chose to move to Forks, which was probably the rainiest place on earth.

Maddie sighed with content as she felt the tiny raindrops fall onto her face and being caught in the sweep of her eyelashes. It was nice to do something on her own again, and she was excited about this one hour with someone to talk to outside the family. She was quite used to it by now as she sometimes spend time with 'friends' after school, and that's why she had kinda missed it.

They walked through the forest, away from the houses and the paths, until they chose to sit down for a while. There couldn't spot any benches or tree logs, that's why they just sat on the grass. It was moist, but they didn't care as the air was warm and it would soon stop raining anyways.

They were sitting next to each other, chatting away about whatever came to their minds, when suddenly his hand glided down from his knee and he hesitantly grabbed her hand.

She glanced sideways at him and a small smile played around her lips. It was kinda sweet how shy he was, she thought, and she had the feeling she knew what would happen next. But ... wasn't that a bit early? He hardly knew her, had no idea who or what she really was and -

"I really like you," he whispered and looked up at her, hoping she would feel the same.

He was sure that her eyes started to gleam at his little confession, and he sighed in relief that she seemed to feel the same.

He couldn't get enough of seeing her like that. No girl has ever made him feel that way and when he as he looked into her eyes and felt her hand in his, he decided to risk it.

He licked his lips nervously, moistening them, before asking in a voice barely above a whisper, "Is it okay if I ... kiss you?"

An adorable frown appeared on her face like she needed to think about it, but he thought: _Now or never._

He gently placed his free hand on the side of her face and just looked into her bright golden eyes for a moment, giving her time to draw back if she wanted to. But when she didn't, he closed his eyes and slowly moved his lips closer to hers.

Maddie felt a surge of conflicting emotions rising up inside of her - she knew she shouldn't do that, but she really wanted to. Kissing felt nice, she knew that from experience, even though it had been quite a while since the last time she found herself in a situation like this.

And so she moved her head toward him and closed her eyes … and then their lips met.

_Oh, wow ..._

Maddie couldn't believe how soft his lips were on hers and how good it felt - so warm and soft and sweet.

She enjoyed the kiss – more than she probably should - and unconsciously moved even closer to him.

Everything was harmless - a sweet, innocent kiss between teenagers.

He parted his lips, and when Maddie felt him doing so, she didn't draw back, but did the same to deepen the kiss they shared. She just gave in, seizing the moment, and suddenly felt a warm and fuzzy feeling in her stomach that grew stronger with each second that passed.

She was so absorbed in this wonderful sensation, that it surprised her when all of a sudden he flinched away from her and held a hand to his bottom lip, sucking in air through his clenched teeth.

Maddie looked at him with wide eyes, confused by the abrupt change in his behaviour, until she realised what had made him pull away from her like that.

There was a little cut on his bottom lip and a single drop of blood was oozing out of it, getting bigger and bigger, while the sweetest and most delicious scent filled the air.

She was immediately mesmerised by the sight of this beautiful, red liquid, and the intoxicating smell coming from it clouded her mind.

Her eyes darkened and she licked her lips, then tilted her head to the side while moving her face closer to his.

Before he even had the chance to process what was happening, Maddie had already seized his hand in hers and guided it away from his lip, then licked the drop of blood away with the tip of her tongue before it could run down his chin.

Her taste buds practically exploded from the sheer sweetness of his blood - she had never tasted anything that delicious before. It was heavenly ... and she wanted more.

Everything happened so fast - he didn't realise that her eyes changed to pitch black, but he heard a strange purring sound that got louder and louder until it almost resembled a growl, and then her lips were back on his.

* * *

**:-)  
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**Please review and tell me what you think!**


	20. Chapter 20

About ten minutes after Maddie had left the house, Emmett spent a little while thinking something over before he suddenly jumped up from the couch and rubbed his hands like he was up to no good, then headed for the stairs to make his way up to their game room. He wanted to play some Xbox before she would come back home … she'd never beat him, he couldn't and wouldn't let that happen! Over the course of the last year she had really gotten quite good at fighting games, but he was the undisputed champion at any game in the house. Well, he was proud of her whenever she beat someone else, as he could say that he had taught her, but he wasn't ready to let her make all the high scores, leaving him to take the runner-up slot.

He grinned to himself as the idea of practising until she would come home played in his head … but if she asked, he would deny it, of course. _What a perfect plan._

With these thoughts in mind, he put his foot on the first step of the stairs, when suddenly the house telephone rang.

A sigh left his lips, because they always got phone calls at the most inconvenient times – he really didn't have time for this now. But then another great idea came to his mind and he smirked. If he would be real quiet and real quick, he could be upstairs before Rose would notice that he was fleeing and then she would have to answer the phone.

"I'm cleaning! Pick up the phone, Emmett!" she called from the kitchen at that moment, knowing full well that he wanted her to come running and talk to whoever wanted to speak with them, even though he was standing not even three feet from the sideboard the phone was standing on. He could be such a child sometimes ...

With a groan, he turned around and reached over the banister, picking up the phone and accepting the call.

"Yo, whazzup?" he asked lazily while taking another step up the stairs on his way to his beloved gaming console.

"_Go find her, quick!_"

The panicky voice made him stop dead in his tracks.

"What? What are you talking about, Allie?" he asked confusedly.

"_Did Maddie leave the house? About ten-fifteen minutes ago?_" she asked in a rush, her words almost jumbling together which made it decisively hard for him to understand her.

The frown that was edged across his face smoothed out as he realised what she was getting at. "Yeah, but she'll be-" "_Go find her immediately! Don't waste any time!_"

Alice was screeching into the phone, and it was loud enough for any vampire in the house to hear. And indeed, Rose come running into the living room not even half a second later, drying her hands on a kitchen towel while she stared at Emmett with wide eyes. She hadn't heard what exactly Alice had said, but she knew that something must upset her that she would scream like that.

"What's wrong?!" she asked Emmett, who just shrugged his shoulders helplessly.

Obviously Alice didn't think they had time for pleasant chats.

"_He's bleeding, go!_" she shouted even louder than before - and that was all they needed to know.

The phone dropped out of Emmett's hand, hitting the floor and falling to pieces, but he paid the clattering sounds no mind. Instead he followed after Rose who had thrown the towel across the room, before sprinting into the foyer and wrenching the front door open.

They followed Maddie's trail of scent in the air – it was, despite the rain and and the strong earthy smells of the muddy ground, still easily traceable for them. There were no noises of humans or smells of them in the air – well, except for the boy's, and so they took off at vampire speed, hoping they would make it there in time to prevent Alice's vision from happening. They weren't sure if Maddie would be able to resist fresh human blood, and that's why they wanted to take her as far away from the boy as possible, so she wouldn't be tempted by it and the urge to feed wouldn't even have the slightest chance to build up inside of her. Sure, she would be mad at them for ruining her day once again, but they could live with that.

The scents and the sound of a beating heart let Emmett and Rose find them easily. Especially the sound of a heart beat eased their worries for a moment, because they were relieved that they found them in time .. until they actually saw them.

The boy was lying on his back on the ground and Maddie was straddling him, her hands on each side of his face and her head bent down to his. A curtain of her hair hid both their faces from them, but with the position they were in, it wasn't too hard to guess what they were doing.

It sure as hell looked like they were making out and Emmett let out an angry snort. He hadn't expected to see his sister with a guy in a position like that – and he would make sure to keep a very close eye on her from now on.

But before he could stomp over to them - to beat him up and then drag her ass home, of course - he caught a whiff of fresh, untainted blood.

Rose smelled it the same time he did, and they glanced at each other, recognising panic on the other one's face.

So Alice's vision came true. They weren't making out ... Maddie was feeding off this human boy.

In an instant Emmett sprinted towards them, then let out a deep, threatening growl to get her attention. She detached her mouth from the wound to hiss back at him, and he seized that moment to grab her by the neck and throw her off the boy.

He knew that if he had done so before that, her teeth might have ripped off half of his face in the process or she might have killed him instantly by crushing his skull in an attempt to hold onto her victim.

Not that he really cared about that human and his well-being, but he didn't want her to kill a person ... and make a huge mess. Explaining bloodlust as a natural instinct that was nothing to be ashamed of to someone, who was basically soaked with blood and was suffering from temporary memory loss, wasn't exactly easy. No, provoking her and pretending to want to claim her victim for himself was a little safer right now.

She landed on all fours, immediately snapping her head back up and baring her teeth at him. Her eyes were pitch-black and wild - they were sparked with hunger and rage and it was clear that the natural instinct of fighting for her prey had taken over.

A string of venom was streaming from the corner of her mouth and as she crouched low and her growling increased, Emmett knew she was about to attack him. He drew himself up to his full height and formed his hands into claw shapes - partly to intimidate her and partly to dare her to follow through with her plan. He didn't care what she would choose - as long as she would battle with him, she wouldn't be able to feed and Rose would be able to check on the boy. His eyes darted to his wife for a split second and he gave her a curt nod, and that's when Maddie pushed herself off the ground and charged.

Emmett ducked in time as he saw her lunging at him, then turned and snatched her by the waist, before throwing her to the ground. She clawed at his arm as he held her down by her throat, and the sounds of tearing fabric and loud hissing filled the air. She was like a wild animal that was about to be caged – fierce, furious and fighting for all she's worth. She was blinded by fury and instinct, her eyes never showing any signs of recognition or even submission.

Meanwhile, Rose headed for the boy, to see how bad the damage was her little sister had inflicted on him.

He was alive, and surprisingly well. Rose couldn't detect any injuries, only his bottom lip was swollen and deep red blood flowed out of a cut and ran down his chin. He seemed to be a little weak though, as he just lay there and blinked his eyes.

"You need to get her away from here," Rose urged, hoping Emmett could hear her even though he was concentrating on Maddie to predict her next move, while she knelt next to the human to block his view of them. She ripped a piece of his shirt off and pressed it to his lip to stop the bleeding, all the while feeling that the sight and the smell of the blood was becoming a little difficult for her to endure. The sweet smell made her throat burn, so she tried her best to fight the urge to breathe in the intoxicating scent. She couldn't lose it as well, there was too much at stake. Both she and Emmett needed to stay calm and think rationally – well, as much as they could, that is.

Emmett pulled Maddie up into a standing position, then quickly stepped behind her so her back was against his chest. Before she even got the chance to fight him, he had grabbed her upper arms in a vice like grip to restrain her, to make sure she wouldn't be able to scratch or bite him.

But she didn't need to bite. He struggled to hold onto her as she thrashed in his arms wildly and when she suddenly stomped on his foot and jerked her head back, he let go of her as his hands shot up to his adam's apple. The pain where the back of her head had collided with his throat was immense and it took him a few seconds to try to catch his breath, as the new painful sensation mixed with the constant burning in his throat formed a whole new level of agony he hadn't experienced before.

Once free, Maddie didn't flee, but headed for the bleeding boy to protect him from her rivals.

Just as she growled and was about to make a swipe at Rose to chase her away from what was hers, Emmett approached her from the side. Out of the corner of her eye she detected him, and realising that he was a bigger threat as he was about to attack her, she whipped her head around to glare at him, then crouched and lunged.

He mimicked her actions and their bodies collided hard in mid-air. Emmett shoved her away as they hit the ground again, sending her crashing into a tree, then he took a few steps backwards to be closer to Rose and the bleeding boy.

She picked herself up from the ground and kicked the broken tree out of the way with her foot, then approached him again, a low, steady growl emitting from her throat. She tried getting close to him from different directions but never got quite close enough for him to grab her - it almost looked like a game to her. She made sure to stay out of his reach, but got near enough that it would infuriate him until he would chase after her. It was an attempt to draw him, one of her two rivals, away from her prey so she could feed again.

But he was to keep her away from the boy, and so he didn't let her provoke him and stayed where he was.

Meanwhile, Rose realised how hard it was to keep herself from breathing in a situation like this. But the worry about her sister and seeing that she was in vampire mode now, made her think rational enough to keep herself from breathing. Besides, the wound would stop bleeding soon as she pressed the cloth to it, and the thought of that made it easier to bear.

Emmett seemed like he didn't even notice the bleeding boy – his sole focus lay on the snarling vampire in front of him. He crouched, his back to Rose and the boy, his eyes narrowed at Maddie. He didn't even growl, in hopes it would make her senses kick back in. Why didn't she recognise them by now?

But she wasn't herself at the moment. She was a bloodthirsty vampire - an instinct driven beast, that only knew thirst and fighting for what was hers. What she wanted was to reach the boy and continue her feed, so she tried to reach him again. She pretended to make a leap to the left, then jumped right. But Emmett had already expected her to try something like that and pushed himself off the ground, snagging her in mid-air.

With his arms around her torso, they fell to the ground and rolled around, until Emmett had her pinned down with his knee on her back, holding her wrists securely in his hands to keep her from fighting him. She growled menacingly while trying to free herself, unwilling to submit to him and give up what was hers.

He had two options now: growl and threaten her, make her realise that he had immobilised and defeated her and that her prey was his now, or try to get her to fight her instincts and snap back out of it. The first option posed the problem that as soon as he would let go of her, she would charge again, because getting away from an enemy unscathed was basically a proof of her strength and that she was the one who dominated the fight. She would think she had the upper hand and he couldn't let that happen - he couldn't continue to fight her and he needed to make sure his own instincts wouldn't suddenly kick in and he would end up seeing her as a threat and hurt her.

"Sshh, calm yourself, Maddie," he whispered, but the vicious snarl coming from her let him know, that she still did not recognise him at all.

"Take her home, quick!" Rosalie called to him over the growling and hissing, then snapped her head back around when the boy sat up. She let her hand with the coth in it sink to her side, and realised that the wound had almost stopped bleeding.

"Wow …," he breathed, marvelling over the kiss he had shared with Maddie. He still didn't understand what was happening around him, he only knew that the kiss and the way she had sucked on his bottom lip was the most sensual and amazing thing he had ever experienced.

What a poor, confused boy ...

He frowned when he saw Emmett dragging Maddie away from the scene. She was trying her best to fight him off, but was no match for his strength. He walked backwards, holding her around her waist with her arms pinned to her sides, one of his hands pressed firmly over her mouth and nose as if he wanted to keep her from breathing.

"What -," he started to ask, but Rose let out a frustrated sigh and lazily raised one eyebrow when his eyes fell on her.

She reached out and pressed down on his carotid to stop the blood from nourishing his brain with oxygen - he was out in a matter of seconds.

* * *

Emmett sat Maddie down on their front porch. She was still struggling like a maniac, and she had nearly slipped from his grasp as he had carried her up the few steps. To make sure that wouldn't happen again, he threw her over his shoulder before entering the house.

She delivered hard blows to his back and kicked him wherever she could reach. It was painful, but he needed to ignore it the best he could for only a few more seconds.

A vicious punch to the kidney area made him bite his lip and groan in pain - but he didn't let go of her.

He sat her down on the kitchen counter, restraining her hands with on of his while reaching back with his free hand to nurse the spot where Maddie had punched him. She was lacking technique and experience, but she was stronger than he had expected.

Her eyes were still pitch-black, darting around the room while she sniffed the air to locate her prey, longing to end her feeding. And just when she was about to leap off the counter, he stopped rubbing his back and grabbed both her arms to pin them to her sides.

"Stop it," he admonished and trapped her legs between his own and the counter to make sure she wouldn't kick him, but Maddie just growled and twisted her neck to look past him in search of the human she wanted to drain.

Pulling her wrists to her lap again, he held them down with one hand, then patted her cheek firmly with his other. It wasn't hard enough to be considered a slap, just firm enough to make sure he would get her attention.

"Maddie. Maddie, snap out of it. Come on."

She hissed in response and tried to bite his hand, which made him retrieve it very quickly and take a step back.

When she was focussing back on locating her prey again, he repeated his action.

Slapping her cheek, he said, "Come on, you can do it. Snap out of it, come to your senses."

Her breathing was frantic as she was trying to inhale every last particle of blood smell from the air and he realised that talking to her wouldn't make any sense – she wasn't able to listen right now.

So Emmett clamped his hand over her mouth and nose, his thumb underneath her chin to keep her jaw shut. He wanted to stop her from smelling her prey, but he also wanted to make sure she wouldn't be able to bite him.

Maddie narrowed her sharp eyes at him. She looked him straight in the eye and he was glad that he had finally managed to catch her attention, so he could speak to her and help her become herself again. Recognising him was the first step to that.

He opened his mouth to say something, but before the first word could leave his mouth, she kicked him in the groin. Hard.

He doubled over and grunted in pain, taking his hands off her to cup his smarting manhood. Maddie seized that brief moment of distraction to jump off the counter and sprint towards the front door.

Luckily Emmett reacted quickly enough and wheeled around, darting after her the best he could. He stumbled and fell to the ground, but managed to get hold of her ankle and pull her back. She hit the ground hard and he threw himself on top of her to keep her from getting away, then pressed a hand over her mouth and nose again so she would hopefully come back to her senses as quickly as possible.

* * *

Rose waited a few minutes until she was sure Emmett and Maddie were home and he had her under control, and when she thought she might risk it, she picked the boy up to carry him to their house. She had played the fainting game with him again, to make sure he wouldn't ask questions or try to get away from her. He would feel dizzy and probably a little high, and luckily that would keep him busy for a little while.

Thank God, he didn't have any severe injuries - Maddie had only ... well, sucked his face. She hadn't killed him in her frenzy and judging by the way he looked, he didn't feel any pain which meant that there was no venom in his wound and he was not changing. She had no idea how this wound on his lip had occurred, but if there had been venom involved, Maddie must have sucked it out while feeding off him. That was great ... but now she couldn't leave him outside, and she certainly couldn't leave him all alone - and that's why she wanted to bring him to their house. While he probably hadn't seen enough or hadn't understood what had happened, she still couldn't risk letting him go.

It was a little dangerous to keep him so close nearby as Maddie would be trying to find him, but she didn't know what else to do and maybe Emmett had already succeeded in calming her. She really hoped he had.

Seeing that that the boy was still unconscious or basically just not able to think straight - and would stay like that for a little while longer - Rosalie entered the house through the garage.

* * *

**Sorry for the wait, guys, but I wasn't able to update sooner. Please review, the next chapter will be up soon!**


	21. Chapter 21

Emmett was sitting on the ground, leaning with his back against the kitchen counter while holding Maddie down on his lap. Her legs were trapped under one of his, while he had his right arm around her upper body, effectively immobilising her. His left hand was cupped over her mouth and nose to keep her from breathing.

She was still not herself, Emmett was sure of that. Her chest was still heaving as she was trying to inhale even through his restraining hand. But at least her eyes weren't darting like crazy anymore - they were just narrowed in anger and displeasure. Being restrained was probably the worst feeling for any vampire, especially when they were longing to feed. This pent-up energy found no release and it was maddening.

Another thing was, that she was being restrained by a rival and probably didn't know what to make of it. She wasn't dead or injured yet, so Emmett wasn't sure how she would react if he let go of her now.

Sounds coming from the garage caught his attention, and he was glad that Rose had finally arrived to help him out. He had no clue how to get Maddie back to normal, as everything he had tried had mostly brought him pain.

He could hear car doors being opened and slammed shut again, then Rose's soft footsteps heading for the door. Only a second passed and she entered the kitchen, the look on her face grave.

When she noticed her sister struggling in Emmett's arms, her eyes blazing with fury at the sight of her, she tzked.

"She's still not back to normal?"

"It's harder than it looks, babe," Emmett retorted and clamped his hand down harder on her mouth and nose as the boy's scent was on his lovely wife. Yuck.

"Maddie," Rose said while approaching them with quick steps, kneeling in front of them.

"Maddie, it's us. We are no threat to you, come on, you need to recognise us," Rose told her in a soft tone of voice, hoping her and Emmett's presence would be enough to make her come back. But the opposite seemed to be the case, as the smell of her prey was all over Rose and that's why she must assume she had stolen what was hers.

A low growl rumbled in her chest and her eyes narrowed even more.

"Snap out of it," Rose demanded, this time using her no-nonsense voice.

And Maddie stilled - she stopped struggling against Emmett's grasp, even though she was still growling at Rose, and then she looked her older sister straight in the eye.

"Snap out of it, calm down."

Slowly, Maddie's eyes changed again. They weren't narrowed in rage anymore, but softened as though she was slowly realising that she had lost her quarry. Now she had to defend herself, so she wouldn't lose her life.

A moan coming from the garage distracted them and Rose cursed under her breath as she straightened up again.

"All right. I'll go check on him. Hold her down," she said, then left the room and entered the garage once more.

"Hilarious ... what else would I be doing, huh?" Emmett asked and clenched his teeth as Maddie once again tried to jerk free when the door to the garage opened.

_Great, and now she knows that the stupid boy is still alive ..._

* * *

Rosalie noticed the boy stirring as she looked at him through the window of Emmett's red jeep. Yes, she had placed him in the car, hoping that way his smell wouldn't waft through the house and make Maddie want to chase after him again.

Luckily his lip had almost stopped bleeding, but it looked to be tripled in size.

_What now?_ As glad as she was that they didn't need to explain an addition to the family to Carlisle and Esme, she now had to keep him quiet and help Emmett get the girl to snap out of her vampire mode.

Deciding that his injury needed to be explained somehow, and it was still too early for Maddie to come close to him, Rose hit him in the face to knock him out.

She didn't use full force and she didn't break his bone, of course, as she didn't plan on making him bleed again. That would definitely be counterproductive.

Seeing that the human would be sleeping for a longer time now, because he suddenly stopped moaning and looked like he was unconscious, she walked into the kitchen once again.

Maddie wasn't struggling any more, but quite frankly, the last time Rose had seen her that pissed off was during her newborn phase.

A low growl still emitted from her throat, but Emmett covered her mouth and rocked her on his lap, trying to calm her.

That almost made Rose snort. She was a vampire in feeding frenzy ... not some whiny baby that couldn't go back to sleep.

So Rose knelt in front of them again, smoothing down her sister's hair. It was a mess, but that wasn't why she wanted to pet it. It would hopefully calm Maddie. The physical contact and her and Emmett's smell would bring her back quicker.

"Take your hand away, she needs to pick up both our scents," Rose said to Emmett and waited for him to comply.

He looked at her like she was joking. "Rose, my hand is over her face. She's surrounded by my scent, but her crazy vamp mind obviously couldn't care less."

"Let's try it."

Reluctantly, Emmett took his hand away from her face, but kept her restraint so she wouldn't lunge at Rose and try to rip her face off.

"Sshh, Maddie," Rosalie whispered, "calm down."

"_Calm down?_ Rose, that doesn't work, trust me," he told her. "I tried everything already."

"Did you try using trigger words?" she asked without taking her eyes off the girl. "Or tell her what happened before the frenzy to jog her memory?"

He gaped at her. "What?"

She groaned at his inexperience with young vampires. "Just talk to her like you always talk to her."

And then he understood. "Tiny," he said, hoping his little nickname for her would do the trick. "Tiny, come on, we cannot play Xbox as long as you are trying to rip me to shreds."

The growls emitting from the girl's throat got quieter as Emmett spoke softly to her. "You promised me we would play tonight, remember? Before you left the house, you said we would play Street Fighter as soon as you come home again, Tiny."

She tilted her head to the side as she seemed to really listen to him, and Rose even got the feeling that her eyes weren't as black as before anymore. She became stone-still and stared straight ahead, right past Rose. Even her breathing ceased.

They didn't know if her apathy was a step backwards, but at least she wasn't snarling or thrashing around anymore.

Rose nodded for Emmett to continue talking to her, while she got closer to Maddie to gaze straight into her eyes.

She reached out and patted her cheek in an affectionate manner, but flinched away when Maddie suddenly snapped at her like an angry cobra.

Huffing, Rose slapped the side of her upper thigh and raised a finger in warning.

"Watch it," she admonished. If Maddie bit her fingers off, she'd be in major trouble with her, seriously.

"Ssh, it's just Rose, Tiny."

Maddie's eyes widened instantly and she gasped.

So _finally!_ she was coming around. Took her long enough.

"What-"

"You fed," Rose cut her off.

Maddie drew in a sharp breath, but Rose stopped her with her hand over her mouth.

"Slow breaths."

Maddie nodded, her eyes - now the colour of dark caramel - showed that she felt uneasy and disturbed. They darted around the room, but this time she wasn't searching for her victim to drain it. She needed to get a sense of orientation, remember how she got here and what had happened. Her head snapped back up and her eyes locked with Rose's as she remembered that she had been outside with a human and had ... tasted his blood. But had she drained him?

"He is neither infected nor dead," Rosalie told her, and Maddie closed her eyes for a moment, her features softening in relief.

When she looked questioningly back at her sister again, Rose explained some more to help her reconstruct the story.

"We got a call from Alice after you left, just in time."

Thank God.

"You did have a little control over yourself, didn't you? You didn't maul him in your frenzy," Rose said in an attempt to calm her, to reassure her. She was aware that Alice was the one who had prevented worse from happening - she had made sure they would reach Maddie before it would be too late. Maddie would have killed the boy, then headed off to find herself another victim - there hadn't been a spark of control left in her. But would it help the situation to tell her that? Definitely not.

Maddie pulled her arm up and Emmett loosened his grip around her. She rubbed her hand over her eyes, like remembering was giving her a headache.

"It'll come back to you as soon as you are completely calm and collected again," Rose told her and leaned back. "Stand up."

Maddie stood, then took a step to the side and leaned against the counter with her back, her hands against her temples.

Only fragments were coming back to her - short little flashes of things she couldn't quite put together again. The smell of rain ... a broken tree ... her arms pinned to her sides. It didn't make much sense, but she trusted Rose that she would be able to remember soon. It was a horrible feeling not knowing what she had done.

With each passing second, Maddie got more and more aware of what she had done and how badly it could have ended. She was completely shocked that she had lost control like that. But what shocked her even more was that there was still a lingering taste of his blood on her tongue.

It had been so delicious and satisfying, that she was already worrying about the next time she had to drink deer blood or something similar as nasty.

She had been hunting a few days ago, and it made the contrast between human and animal blood even more prominent. Now even bear seemed oddly stale and unsavoury.

Could she ever be close to humans again? Now that she knew how tasty they were, how perfect their blood was to satiate her thirst ... she'd never regain her self-control, it was impossible.

Emmett breathed a sigh of relief and stood up while cupping his groin.

Rose lifted one eyebrow at seeing him do so. "What happened to you?" she asked.

"Nut kick," he replied in a strained voice.

His wife gave him a sympathetic look, hoping he would recover soon.

"Emmy, I'm so sorry!" Maddie suddenly cried and covered her mouth with both her hands when she saw that he was still unable to stand completely straight.

"It's all right, Tiny," he said and ruffled her hair.

And she felt horrible. Well, she felt horrible since she was back, but seeing that she had hurt him was making everything so much worse. "Rose-"

"It happens, Maddie. Calm yourself."

They sat down with her, watching her to see if she would be able to control the urge to breathe. Since she wasn't really used to breathing much around humans anyways, it wasn't impossibly hard for her. But everytime the boy moaned as he slowly reached consciousness, her eyes darkened involuntarily and she made to stand up like she wanted to head for the garage.

"We cannot wait much longer. You need to control yourself, Maddie." Rose said when she walked into the living room again. She had checked on the boy to see how he was doing.

"I'm trying," she replied through clenched teeth, pressing the heels of her hands into her eyes in an attempt to keep her instincts at bay.

"You're doing well, just don't breathe," Rose praised and patted her back, then cleared her throat to announce their next course of action.

"All right. That's what we'll do: We need to give him a few bruises and maybe tear his clothes a little. Then you, Maddie, need to make him forget about what happened and tell him you two had been ... hiking. He was a little clumsy and fell."

"I think it would be easier to just kill him," Emmett threw in as he watched Maddie nod at Rose. She didn't look too comfortable with Rose's idea, but more like the thought of going near the boy was causing her physical pain. He got up from his chair and walked over to the door that led to the garage.

Rose slowly turned her head towards him and glared at him.

"What?" he asked and blinked at her. "I mean-"

"He is alive and will stay alive until he dies of natural causes, all right?"

Emmett held her gaze, then buried his hands in the pockets of his jeans and kicked against the wall. "Internal bleeding is a natural cause ...," he grumbled.

Rose made her way over to her sulky husband.

"_Stop talking about bleeding!_" she fiercely whispered into his ear, then pointed over her shoulder at Maddie, who was hugging herself as she started to shake a little.

"Xbox, Tiny?" Emmett offered, his voice as well as the look in his eyes was apologetic. He didn't mean to cause her unnecessary distress - he just tended to say the wrong things at the wrong time when he was under stress.

"You two can play after we have taken care of him. Let's try it, Maddie, come on."

But Maddie shook her head. "I can't."

"Yes, you do. It's only for a minute, you can do that."

"No!"

"We need to fix this, so stop defying me. You were still under control when we found you, and I know that you can do it again."

"But I hurt Emmett, I don't wanna lose it again and end up hurting him," she said and sounded like she was close to tears.

_Of course she would be concerned about that ..._

Emmett sighed. "You won't hurt me, Mad, trust me."

Biting her lip, she looked up at him. "Okay," she breathed, then made to walk to the garage.

Rosalie held up a hand to stop her. "Maddie ... I did not mean to push you, I'm sorry. Are you sure you are ready to come near him?"

Maddie frowned. She had trouble focussing on anything but her self-control and keeping herself from drawing a breath that might pull her back into feeding and attacking mode. That's why she had trouble following Rose. "Emmett?"

"No, the boy," Rose clarified.

"No," Maddie admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. She wasn't sure. She didn't know if she would snap again, she had no clue what it would be like being around humans from now on.

It scared her. She felt like a ticking time bomb, that could blow up any minute. Like a newborn. Well, not exactly like a newborn, she just feared she would be like a newborn again.

"We're right next to you," Rose said and put an arm around Maddie's shoulders, offering strength and support as they walked into the garage.

Maddie did not breathe when they entered.

As she walked past the car, she saw Chris lying on a work table off to the side. Rose must have pulled him out of the car a few minutes ago. First she had just opened the car door, then left the garage door open so his scent would enter the house - it was a test to see if she could still keep herself from breathing and snapping even though he was so close nearby. But now that he had stopped bleeding and she had calmed down, they needed to take care of him. If it really wouldn't work - today or maybe tomorrow - they might have to beat him into a coma or kill him, then get Maddie away from civilisation for a while ... but they wouldn't dismiss their previous plan just yet.

Maddie approached him and noticed that she was still calm. She had never really felt an attraction to him, so seeing him now wasn't triggering any odd instincts. That was good to know.

When she looked down at him with curious eyes, because there was a dried blood stain on his shirt, her eyes widened and she flinched back, but Rose kept her in place.

Maddie looked at her and she nodded.

OK, yes. Dried blood didn't trigger her instincts either. She remembered having been in a similar situation before, and even though she had kinda panicked, she hadn't killed anyone. That was also good to know.

And then Chris opened his eyes.

He looked a little groggy ... and confused.

"Huh … ow," he uttered and reached up to nurse his – probably – smarting cheekbone. Rose had hit him good.

"What … where … Maddie?" he asked when his eyes locked with hers. "You have amazing lips, babe …," he blabbered, probably not even realising what he was saying, and Maddie bit her lip. She could see Emmett's jaw clenching out of the corner of her eye.

But it was good that this guy had obviously not understood a single thing that had happened around him.

"I'll give him bruises all right," Emmett growled under his breath and Rose glared at him.

"I'd rather do it," she replied, giving him a pointed look.

"Oh no, I have taken a kick to the nuts for this little punk, I'll hit him good," he said and took a step towards the table, his hands balled into fists.

Rose grabbed him by his forearm and held him back. "No, you won't!" she hissed.

He let out a little gasp, then nodded his head. "Yes, I will! How dare he even _think_ about touching her?! And I can still smell her scent on his breath, that little bastard!"

Maddie reached forward and touched the guy's hand that he held out towards her. Emmett slapped first his, then hers away.

"Emmett, stop it! She needs to do it!"

He huffed in response, then crossed his arms and glared at the boy.

Maddie reached out again and took his hand in hers. "Zone out," she said and watched his eyes go blank.

Emmett frowned when she did that. "What are you making him unconscious for?"

"He doesn't need to feel the pain," Maddie explained, using up the last air she had in her lungs. She would need to draw a breath to speak again, and it appeared to make her visibly nervous.

"_Oh yes, he does!_" he countered, making Rose roll her eyes.

"Would you stop it? Turn around, both of you," she ordered and waited until they did as she told them before she buckled down to the task.

She hit the boy several times, inflicting new injuries and future bruises. She tore his shirt a little and was glad that his clothes were already a little muddy and stained.

Fishing his cell phone from his pocket, she then crushed it in her hand and let the pieces fall to the floor, then shoved them under the table with her foot.

"Continue." was all she said.

Maddie turned around and looked at her sister.

"You know what to tell him."

Maddie nodded. And so she took a quick breath with a hand over her mouth, then told him that they were hiking in the morning and he fell, hurting himself. He lost his cell phone and Maddie's battery was low, so she had to wait for him to reach consciousness again before she ran back to the house to get her siblings, so they could help her bring him back.

After that, Emmett brought him over to his house, telling his parents, who had just arrived the day before, what happened. They thanked him for his help, then brought their son to the hospital.

* * *

"Hey," Emmett said when he reentered the house a little while later.

Rose was sitting on the couch with Maddie, who had her blanket wrapped securely around herself. The scents of home were comforting to her as was the way Rose let her fingers run through her hair.

_The poor girl_, he thought. She had amazing self-control, but it had probably been just a matter of time until she would slip.

He had killed several people while he had been a newborn, and he had slipped even after that phase, so he knew exactly how hard it was to deal with the thought of having failed.

But this wasn't about him now - it had happened to her, and she was beating herself up over it.

She probably didn't want to hear it, but she shouldn't be upset about having fed. It was an instinct, after all, she couldn't help it.

He walked towards them, then slumped down next to Maddie, putting an arm around her shoulders and pulling her close.

"Sorry about your … balls, Emmy," she murmured into his chest, sounding bashful and really, really sorry.

He laughed a little and ruffled her hair. "Just don't do it again. But you weren't yourself."

She grimaced, but seemed to believe him that he wasn't mad at her.

"Besides, " he added, "I threw you into a tree."

He glanced down at her as she pulled away and sat up again, a thoughtful look on her face.

"Ah," she muttered, and suddenly her eyes shone with realisation. "I remember the tree."

Now it was his turn to feel really bad about something. "Did I hurt you?" he hesitantly asked, then grabbed her by the arm and pushed her forward a little to check her over for injuries.

"No, I don't think so. Must have been the adrenaline."

He let go of her and nodded. "Yeah, probably ... hey, anyone know how to fix the floor?" he asked and pointed at a spot near the front door. There was a crack in the wood and it was splintered - just where he had tackled her to the ground when she had tried to get away from him.

"We'll think of something," Rose said, hoping they would be able to hide it from Carlisle and Esme. Since they hadn't called yet, she was pretty sure Alice hadn't told them ... and Rose didn't want to mention Maddie's little accident in the same breath as greeting them.

It was silent for a moment, until Emmett spoke again.

"How did it happen anyways?" he queried and looked at Maddie, who suddenly averted her eyes.

"It was an accident, Emmett," Rosalie answered for Maddie, giving him a look like she wanted to tell him to drop the subject.

"I know, but how did it happen?" he asked again, looking curiously at his little sister who all of a sudden seemed to be oddly interested in the pattern of the floor.

She so did not want to tell him. She remembered everything by now and knew, that Emmett wouldn't like to hear the full story. Normally she could talk to him about everything, but he was so protective of her that she wasn't sure what he would do.

"Come on, Mad, I won't judge," he said and nudged her shoulder with his.

She just lifted one corner of her mouth in a little grimace, but still didn't reply.

"I think you kissed, am I right?"

Now she lifted her head, staring at him with wide eyes. Was he okay with kissing?

"Am I right?" he asked again.

She looked away and nodded, and that made him sigh.

"Anything else? Did he touch you?" His eyes darkened for a brief moment when he said the word 'touch'.

"No," Maddie told him and shook her head, then glanced at him to see how he would react.

She could see him relaxing. He was genuinely relieved, Maddie could tell, and that relieved her.

But Emmett wasn't done yet. "Remember what I told you? If someone touches you?"

"Uh-huh," she said and pulled the blanket even tighter around her shoulders.

"So?" he prompted, waiting for an answer.

"Hurt 'em."

Rose sighed at hearing that answer, but Emmett smiled, obviously proud of her. "Exactly."

* * *

**Carlisle and Esme will arrive in the next chapter ;-)**

**But this was the last update for a little while ... I was a bit bored yesterday and so I booked a flight and I'm leaving tomorrow. I'll be back in three weeks and then I'll continue with this story! Two more chapters, I think.  
**

**To keep you occupied for ... well, half a minute of these three weeks, I made a poll! I have never made a poll before, I really hope it works :-/ I have a few story ideas and that's why I want you to tell me which story you'd like to read! You can find the descriptions on my profile page. Please vote!  
**


	22. Chapter 22

Carlisle and Esme left Forks the next day, just like they had planned to weeks ago.

Both of them were relaxed and happy, as the prospect of spending two full weeks at this wonderful place with its peaceful atmosphere was granting them a well-deserved break from their daily routine and the stress it often brought. And they were so excited about seeing their children again, that they had hurried at home to get to the lake as quickly as possible.

But apparently, not everyone was that excited about this day. To be honest, Rose would have preferred for them to stay away altogether.

Alice had told her that - besides Edward, of course - no-one knew about Maddie's little accident. So it was on Rose and Emmett to decide if Carlisle and Esme should be informed. Yes, of course they should, since Maddie was a member of the coven and posed a little risk now. She would need more supervision and more hunting now to help her overcome the urge to feed off humans. And naturally Esme and Carlisle wouldn't be able to help her as long as they didn't know what had happened.

But the girl had begged her siblings not to tell them. She was so embarrassed that something harmless and innocent like a little kiss had turned her into a mindless thing that would attack humans, as well as her own kind. She had hurt Emmett, because she hadn't been able to recognise him, and she had been in the process of draining a human - an act that would have ended his life. Funny enough, this was the first time she hadn't spilled a drop.

Apart from being embarrassed, she was nervous about what they would say to her. Would they be mad at her for feeding off a human? They always told her that it was an instinct and things like that happen, that's why they needed to be in control at all times. But her control had slipped and so she had proved to be incompetent. What would happen now?

At least Rose and Emmett had helped her fix this mess as best as they could and reassured her that everything was fine and that they would help distract her from her thoughts revolving around this new kind of craving. No one would ever be mad at her for slipping up and the boy wouldn't even remember anything about this. Besides, he was alive and was only suffering minor injuries._ And_ he wasn't turning into a vampire, another big plus.

Rose had spent the morning trying to patch the splintered parquet floor, just where Maddie had fallen down when Emmett had grabbed her ankle to keep her from running. Esme would notice the damage immediately because it was still visible, and so Rose covered it with a rug. She wanted for Carlisle and Esme to settle in first before she would brief them about the happenings of the day before – it would be better for all of them. No need to ruin their arrival when they would be so excited to see them again ... and no need to make Maddie think her slip up was such a big deal. Well, it was, but she was so nervous that downplaying it a bit seemed like the logical course of action for Emmett and Rose.

But quite frankly, the floor was only a minor problem – a way bigger problem was her eyes.

They were still golden, but there was a little spark of orange in them now, like a flicker. She hadn't gotten that much blood from the boy's lip and Emmett had been with her quick enough ... but still, it was obvious that she had had something more than just plain animal blood.

* * *

It was already dark outside when Carlisle and Esme arrived. Clouds of steely grey hung in the air, looming over the lake and the houses. The smell of rain was everywhere, thick and heavy, and they knew that a storm was coming.

Carlisle parked the car in front of the garage and as soon as they got out, the front door was flung open and Emmett stormed out of the house. He jumped down the stairs and ran toward them like he had missed them terribly.

"Hey Mom and Dad!" he greeted them and immediately engulfed his mother in one of his famous bear hugs.

"Emmett, it is so good to see you!" she exclaimed and returned the hug, trying to wrap her arms completely around her bulky son's torso. He seemed to be his usual cheerful self she noticed, and a short giggle escaped her lips at his exuberance. It felt good to see that her children were well and happy.

When Emmett loosened the welcoming embrace, Carlisle gave him a pat on the back to gain his attention, then squeezed his shoulder. "How are you, son?"

"Great! This really is a cool place," he replied and turned his head to take in the view of the lake and the forest.

"I'm glad to hear that you are enjoying your holidays. I brought fishing rods ... maybe you and I could try them out sometime?" Carlisle asked hopefully.

Emmett let out a short laugh and nodded his head. It's been a while since the last time they had spent some time together, only the two of them, and he was really looking forward to it.

Carlisle walked to the trunk of his car to retrieve their suitcases. He lifted them up, but Emmett just took them from him and carried them into the house for him like he felt it was his duty. "Thank you, Em," Carlisle called after him with a chuckle and locked his car so they could go look for the girls.

Rose was leaning against the doorframe of the front door when Esme came towards her.

"Rosalie!" she said cheerfully and gave her blonde daughter a hug.

"Hello Esme, how was the drive?"

"No problems."

"It's good to see you again."

"It's good to see you, too, dear. I missed you so much." Esme smiled at her lovingly when she pulled away, but then she started looking around like searching for something ... or someone.

"Where's Maddie?"

Rosalie looked behind herself into the foyer, then shrugged her shoulder dismissively. "In her room, I guess."

"Hasn't she heard us arriving?" Esme frowned, then walked into the house. "Maddie?"

And then she was suddenly standing there, leaning against the newel post of the stairs. She was wearing sunglasses, which looked weirdly out of place considering that it was starting to rain outside and it was getting darker by the minute. But Esme had stopped wondering about her children's idiosyncrasies long ago. As long as they were happy and content, she was happy and content. And they have seemingly enjoyed their holidays so far.

"Mom!" A smile lit up the girl's face and she skipped over to Esme, flinging her arms around her neck like she was genuinely happy to see her. Well, she was, but she was also trying to hide the jitteriness she was feeling.

"Sweetie, there you are!" Esme sighed and pulled away after a moment, only to pepper her face with little kisses.

Maddie looked away from Esme and saw Carlisle entering the house after Emmett.

A smile appeared on his face when he saw her and he immediately opened his arms, inviting her into a hug.

"Come here, sweetheart," he said, and Maddie let go of Esme and made her way over to him.

He hugged her and rubbed her back, glad to finally be here with his children. Seeing them safe and sound gave his heart a jolt of happiness.

But the hug did not last long, because Maddie pulled away and asked Emmett if he wanted to play some video games. He whooped and bolted up the stairs after her.

While that was a tad bit weird, Carlisle and Esme thought nothing of it. They could hear them playing and cheering in the other room while they took a shower and unpacked. Everything was fine and the next two weeks would be beautiful.

When they were finished, they sat down on the porch with Rose to talk about what they had done and experienced during the last two weeks they hadn't seen each other.

It was hours later when they reentered the house. The rain was whipping noisily against the windows and the side of the house, and the porch did not offer much shelter from the wind and constant rain anymore. The living room wasn't occupied by anyone, as Maddie had gone straight to her room to read after playing some video games with Emmett, and that's why Esme called for her. She wanted to see her daughter for more than just a minute when they had greeted each other.

Rose had gone upstairs to spend some time with Emmett, when Maddie walked into the living room and curled up on the couch, flipping through a magazine she had brought with her.

Esme smiled to see her daughter so at ease, then she approached her, holding something in her hands.

"I brought you your phone, Maddie," she told her and held it up. "The battery is flat, but you brought the charger with you, didn't you?"

"Yes, thanks," Maddie mumbled. "You can put it on the table."

She placed it on the coffee table in front of her, like Maddie had told her, but didn't understand why the girl suddenly didn't really care about her phone anymore. She had insisted that she'd bring it with her, and now she just seemed to be annoyed and completely disinterested.

"I heard you went swimming with Emmett," Esme said softly, trying to start a little conversation. "Did you have fun?"

"Yeah, the lake is awesome," Maddie replied without taking her eyes off the pages and nodded her head, then continued to focus on the article she was currently reading.

Esme hesitated for a moment, wondering why her daughter was giving such curt answers whithout even looking at her. When she loved something, she was almost ecstatic about it, but right now it seemed like she was only saying what she thought she wanted to hear.

Deciding that she might have misjudged the situation because she could not imagine what would upset her daughter right then, she sat down next to her. "Do you like your room?" she asked casually, hoping by asking yet another question she could start a little conversation with her. If she didn't like her room, she would change it instantly, no problem.

"I love it, thanks," Maddie stated and this time even glanced at her.

In that split second of eye contact, Esme realised what she was trying to hide.

"Maddie ... what happened to your eyes?" she asked with a frown and reached up touch her daughter's face. But Maddie avoided her touch by lifting her shoulder to shield her face and turning away.

Immediately Esme let her hand drop back to her lap, but the frown on her face became a lot more pronounced. And - much to the girl's dismay - Carlisle had witnessed that little scene from where he stood behind the kitchen counter. He let his newspaper sink to the counter top, then blinked his eyes a few times in confusion before walking over to them with a similar frown as Esme's on his face.

He reached them with quick strides and came to a halt in front of his youngest, who chose this moment to become engrossed in her magazine again like she hadn't read anything in years.

"Maddie, are you all right, dear?" he queried softly, concern audible in his voice.

"Uh-huh," she replied, but did not dare to look up at him. She knew they wouldn't leave her alone now ... they had noticed her eyes.

And now he stood right in front of her and she couldn't leave the room without them noticing that something fishy was going on. Well, unfortunately they had figured as much already.

He took a deep breath like he needed to built up courage or something, and his next question was exactly what Maddie had hoped he wouldn't ask. "Let me see your eyes."

No ... no, absolutely not.

She was aware that her eyes didn't look the same anymore ... it wouldn't take long and they would be back to normal, maybe a few days, and that's why she had planned to avert her eyes for that duration.

So instead of complying with his request, she just sunk deeper into the soft cushions of the couch and held the magazine a little higher, to make sure that no matter what Carlisle would try, he wouldn't be able to get a glimpse of her 'discoloured' eyes.

But too bad, he did not leave her alone like she would have wanted, because her behaviour unnerved him. _Had nobody taken her hunting?_

After another brief moment of silence and patiently waiting for her to comply, he pushed her magazine down, then grabbed her chin and guided her head up so she would have to obey and look at him. He did so firmly, but gently.

She couldn't twist away anymore so she just looked down, still hoping she could keep them from seeing what they must be expecting to see.

"Look at me," he said, his voice held authority that she suddenly didn't dare to disobey. He didn't sound threatening, but commanding enough that it made her comply without really wanting to.

_Oh shit._

And while she bit down on her lower lip, she slowly lifted her gaze to his.

He gasped silently when their eyes met, but regretted his reaction instantly. Hoping she hadn't noticed his slightly shocked expression, he quickly placed his other hand on the side of her face and used his thumb to pull her eyelid down to gain get a better view of the colour of her irises.

"Maddie, what happened?" he asked softly and knelt in front of her, taking her hands in his.

"Nothing, Daddy," she replied in a thin voice - she felt like crawling under a rock.

He sighed while focussing back on her eyes, shaking his head a little and giving her a sad smile. "Sweetheart, that is not nothing."

She squirmed.

"What happened?"

Maddie pulled one of her hands free to rub at her eye, then she turned her head away from him. "Rose?" she called over her shoulder, her voice quivering a little from the anxiety she was feeling.

She looked nervous when she turned back around, and so Carlisle gave her hand a gentle rub, trying to reassure her.

He knew that in the story he would probably soon be told, human blood was involved. But the question was: _Why so little?_

If she had slipped and attacked a human, then how come she didn't get more than maybe one or two mouthfuls?

His mind started racing. Did one of his other children slip up, too? Did they feed off someone and Maddie … found the body? Or joined in? Where was the body?

And then another thought struck him. Was that person going through the change right now? Or is the change already completed? Then where was that person? The house certainly didn't smell of anyone except his children.

He hoped the worry did not show in his eyes while they waited more or less patiently for Rose to come downstairs.

Just a moment later and his eldest daughter appeared in the living room, the look on her face tense.

"What happened?" Carlisle asked and sat down on the armrest next to Maddie.

"It was an accident." was the first thing Rose said.

Carlisle stared at her, glanced down at Maddie, then looked back at Rose. "Please go on," he said when she didn't explain any further.

Rose took a deep breath and sunk down onto the armrest of one of the armchairs. "Maddie fed off a boy," she explained.

"Oh sweetie," Esme whispered and immediately hugged Maddie to herself, stroking her cheek affectionately to show her support and love.

Slipping up was very tough for them, especially after the newborn phase. They had a conscience and that made it unbearable to know that they had ended a human life. She herself had experienced it once or twice and had witnessed Emmett doing the same - it evoked a million different emotions - from guilt to shame to disgust with oneself, until there was finally acceptance of what they were and that slip-ups happened. They were unpleasant and unfortunate, but not unnatural.

"She didn't drink much," Carlisle stated, looking at Maddie again, focussing on her eyes and the tiny orange flicker he could detect.

"No," Rose confirmed, "we found her quick enough."

Carlisle nodded his head, then took his eyes off Maddie to look at Rose. "The boy ..."

"... is well. Maddie changed his memory and he is home, safe and sound."

These were amazingly good news, both Carlisle and Esme thought. But Maddie looked like she wanted to cry.

"Oh sweetheart, everything's all right," Esme cooed and ran her hand through her hair in an attempt to calm her. She could understand that she was upset and probably confused now, but these were fantastic news. The boy was alive and she did not drink much - she'd be fine in no time.

"So she didn't pass any venom to him?" Carlisle asked, hoping Rose could confirm that as well. He needed to make sure that they had taken care of everything, that they didn't leave any traces behind. No human must ever know what had happened.

"No." Rose shook her head. "Maddie obviously sucked it all out of the wound. He was fine when we arrived."

Carlisle stroked Maddie's hair softly, never taking his eyes off Rose. "How did you explain the wound?"

"She did not bite him. He had a little cut that was bleeding."

Even though it was always dangerous for the whole family when one of them fed, these were astonishingly good news. A feeling of pride surged through him as he realised that all three of them had worked together and had shown exemplary behaviour regarding the situation. "And you have covered it all up," he concluded.

"Yes. I brought him to the garage until Maddie was herself again, and then she altered his memory, even though he probably hadn't seen much anyways. And he had enjoyed it, actually."

Carlisle raised his eyebrows at hearing that.

_Oh God, Rose …_

Maddie squinted her eyes shut. It was none of their business what she did in her spare time, now was it?

"He ... enjoyed it?" Carlisle asked in confusion, and Esme looked like she had been about to ask the same question.

Maddie put on a face that indicated she thought Rose was just being silly, then made to stand up, but Carlisle pulled her back down on the couch.

"Where was his injury?" he asked Rose, who suddenly smirked a little. It was the first time since the incident that she seemed to be at ease again and was actually having fun. But she did not answer, so Carlisle directed his gaze toward Maddie and asked her the same question - a question she chose not to answer.

He patted her elbow to show her that he expected an answer.

"Maddie, where was his injury?" he asked in the same tone he had used before.

_Ugh, thanks Rose ..._

Maddie rolled her eyes before getting up from the couch. "On his face. Tzk, you have a dirty mind," she replied and made to go to her room.

He cleared his throat warningly at her answer, and she stopped to look back at him with a sheepish expression. "Hm?"

"That wasn't very nice."

"I'm sorry," she said and gave him a little smile before turning around and vanishing into her room.

With a sigh of relief, Carlisle felt the tight knot of worry in his chest unwind. She would be fine, he was sure of that.

* * *

**It's almost over, guys! Just one more chapter ;-) Whoop!**

**Thanks for reading and please review!  
**


	23. Chapter 23

**Another chapter just for you guys! Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!**

* * *

Rumbling and clattering sounds from Maddie's room made Carlisle and Esme a little uneasy. They were concerned that their youngest was starting to go through withdrawal and that she was desperately trying to distract herself from her thirst for human blood. She would feel like that for a little while and they hoped that she wouldn't suffer too much. At least she wasn't a newborn anymore and could try to suppress the urge to feed off humans – they were sure that she didn't want to assume a different diet now, even though she had more than likely enjoyed the rich taste of human blood a lot more than the comparably slightly bitter and rancid taste of animal blood.

Unable to endure the sounds and the increasing worry any longer, Esme stood up from the couch and made her way down the hall and over to the girl's door. She knocked and waited to be allowed in but Maddie didn't reply, so she just opened the door and entered.

"Oh honey, what's wrong?" she asked with a worried look on her face when she saw Maddie sitting down on her bed with a huff and crossing her arms over her chest.

Without looking up at her, she replied, "Nothing's wrong."

Esme took a step towards her, then tilted her head slightly to the side while watching her for a moment. "Are you sure?" she queried softly.

Noticing the worry in her mother's voice, Maddie scooted to the side in order to give her some room to sit down next to her. It was obvious that she didn't believe her and that she wanted to talk, Maddie already knew that kind of voice.

Esme walked over to the bed and took a seat right next to her before putting an arm around her shoulders and giving her a kiss on the temple. "I just thought that maybe you need to talk," she told her while gently stroking her hair.

She knew exactly what Esme was getting at, but she still wanted to ask. It felt good to hear her mother's soft voice that didn't even have the slightest hint of accusation or anger to it. Maddie had no clue why she was still checking if anyone would be mad about her slip-up after all of them had assured her that accidents happen and she shouldn't worry so much. "Talk about what?"

"About what happened. Honey, I just want to make sure that you are all right."

"Why wouldn't I be all right?"

"Because," Esme said and let out a sigh before she continued, "you fed. I just thought that maybe you are feeling nervous now or that you have some questions."

Maddie shook her head. "No."

"No?" Esme asked softly with her eyebrows raised.

"No, I don't have any questions," Maddie answered and jumped up from the bed, hoping she would stop pestering her with all the questions that way. She really wasn't feeling well and didn't want her mother to notice. She knew she'd only want to talk about it, but Maddie didn't feel like talking because she didn't think that it would help. So she walked over to the desk and started picking up things at random, then threw them into a suitcase lying on the floor next to the bed.

Esme frowned as she didn't understand what she was doing, but when her eyes fell on the suitcase which she hadn't noticed before, her eyes widened while a gasp left her lips. "Wh-what are you doing?" she queried, looking from her daughter to the case and back again.

"I'm packing," Maddie replied casually and shrugged her shoulders. She was putting things into a suitcase - what did it look like what she was doing?

Standing up from the bed, Esme turned to the side to face her completely, then reached out and placed her hand on Maddie's forearm in order to make her stop and explain to her why exactly she felt the need to pack up and where exactly she wanted to go. "You're packing? Why are you packing?"

When she noticed Esme's hand curl around her arm, she realised that she hadn't given her mother a reason yet – she was probably worried now. "Oh, Tanya will be here in a few hours. She's coming to pick me up," she told her matter-of-factly, then made to grab a book to put in her suitcase, but Esme did not let go.

"Maddie, I'm confused. How come I didn't know anything about that?"

"Mom," Maddie said and looked pointedly down at her mother's hand. When Esme let go of her, she took the book and threw it into the suitcase, then crossed her arms over her chest and leaned with her hip against the side of the desk. "I called her a few hours ago and asked her to pick me up."

Esme blinked at her like she was still unable to understand what was going on. "You called her?"

"Yeah. Where's the problem?" She lifted her shoulders and looked questioningly at her.

When Esme didn't immediately reply, Maddie just pushed away from the desk and stepped over to the shelves in the corner of the room.

Esme watched her for a moment before she let out a sigh and replied, "I thought we would spend the next two weeks together, Maddie. To be honest, I don't like to hear that you are leaving now."

"I don't wanna stay here," Maddie muttered while scanning through the books in search of something she hadn't read before and wanted to take with her to Alaska.

"Think about it again, please. I-"

Maddie wheeled around and practically gaped at her, her eyes wide with shock and disbelief. She couldn't believe that Esme would seriously want to make her stay! "I'm _hurting_, Mom!" she exclaimed. "I'll slip again if I stay here, I cannot let that happen ... and I'm starting to feel jittery and nervous and I don't like it! I wanna go somewhere where I won't have to fear that I'll do it again!"

Seeing the desperate look in the girl's eyes and noticing her chest heaving with her rapid breathing, Esme swallowed heavily and nodded her head. She hadn't seen her for two full weeks and had been looking forward to see her children again and spend time with them – but now she realised that making her stay here would be nothing but selfish and very dangerous for all of them. Just right now she had managed to upset her to the point that she would forget that she was trying not to breathe, because she was scared she might pick up the scent of human blood. "I understand, Maddie," she said quickly and held her hands up in a soothing manner.

She eyed Esme with a scrutinising look, but quickly realised that Esme wasn't trying to forbid her from going. Still, she sounded a little defiant when she said, "I called Tanya because I'll spend the rest of the holidays with her anyways. Going to Alaska two weeks early won't make that big of a difference."

"You are right, sweetheart. I wasn't thinking, I'm sorry."

The apology calmed her some more and her breathing slowed down to a normal level. "She said she'll help me."

Esme approached her and placed her hand on her daughter's upper arm, immediately starting to rub it in a comforting manner. "We would help you too if you'd let us. Maddie, of course we would have agreed to drive you up to Alaska if you'd told us that that's what you wanted."

"But I didn't want that," she said with a shake of her head and took a step back to break the physical contact. She really didn't want to look her mother in the eye, and so she started fumbling with the nearest object she could reach. It was her hairbrush.

"Why?"

"Because you were looking forward to your holidays. I didn't wanna ruin it for you," Maddie admitted after some hesitation, her eyes fixed on the wooden brush in her hand.

Esme gently touched Maddie's cheek to make her look up at her, and when the girl eventually lifted her head, she could see sadness and nervousness shining in her eyes. After a moment Maddie sighed and put her brush back on the shelf, then followed after Esme who walked to the bed once more. She watched her sit down, then let her take her by the hand and pull her closer until she would stand right in front of her.

"You could never ruin our holidays. And driving you up to Alaska would certainly not have ruined anything."

"But I really screwed up this time," she mumbled and hung her head, unable to look Esme in the eye.

She enfolded her daughter's hand in both of hers. "No, you didn't. Human blood is our basic food, feeding off animals is not natural, but still, you manage because your self-control is so strong. Don't you ever think that we are disappointed in you, and don't you be disappointed in yourself. Everything's fine, honey."

"Fine, uh-huh," she scoffed.

"Maddie-"

She snapped her head back up and almost glared at Esme. "Mom, _nothing_ is fine, don't be ridiculous. I feel like shit - thanks to my _wonderful_ 'self-control' - and I wanna get away from here as soon as possible."

"Maddie-"

"No!" she yelled and wrenched her hand free.

"_Is everything all right in here?_"

Hearing her father's voice startled Maddie, and she let out a gasp before turning around with wide eyes.

And indeed, Carlisle was standing by the door, looking into the room. He had heard raised voices and immediately assumed that they were arguing – that's why he came here to make sure that everything was fine. Maybe Maddie was upset about the blood and Esme needed some help explaining to her what her body would be going through now and how she would be feeling until she had full control over her thirst again. The poor thing...

He looked from his daughter to his wife, and then his gaze fell on the open suitcase lying on the floor.

"What is the suitcase doing here?" he asked and pointed at it while stepping into the room.

Maddie scratched the side of her face while saying, "Tanya will pick me up in a few hours, I'm going to Alaska." She watched him, trying to see in his face what he thought about this. The possibility that he might react just like Esme was making her a little nervous.

He looked at her for a moment, a frown etched across his forehead. Naturally he had assumed she would stay with them for the next two weeks as it had been their original plan, but seeing that it was indeed safer for her to spend some time in a place with less humans around, he started to feel annoyed with himself for not coming up with the idea himself. Her darkened eyes were fixed on him and when he realised that he was still frowning at her, he quickly changed his expression into one of approval and slowly started to nod his head.

"That was your idea, I assume?" he asked her and glanced at the suitcase once more before focussing back on her.

She just nodded her head in response.

He closed the distance between them and quickly embraced her in a warm, fatherly hug. His eyes found Esme's, and he could see that she wasn't as taken by the idea as he was.

"That was very responsible and mature of you," he praised, kissing the top of her head.

Obviously hearing him say that confused her and so she pulled back - well, as far as he allowed her to. Squinting her eyes at him, she asked in a somewhat uneasy voice, "... really?"

"Yes, of course. I think that you aren't feeling well and now you are making sure to get away from humans so you won't take any risks, as well as making sure that you will stop hurting soon."

That answer seemed to reassure her, because she suddenly hugged him tight again and let her head rest against his chest.

He felt her heave a sigh of relief and he let his hand run through her hair in a comforting manner. When she pulled away again and looked up at him, he gave her an encouraging smile.

"When will it stop?" she asked quietly, seemingly unsure whether she really wanted an answer or not.

"A few days, honey," he replied while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "You didn't drink much, and the more animal blood you consume, the quicker the pain will dull again. Your body will stop craving human blood."

The memory of the taste of the wonderful human blood on her tongue popped up and it brought a sharp pain to her throat. She managed not to wince or whine, just tensed up and closed her eyes while she waited for it to fade again. The more animal blood she would consume, the quicker the pain would fade … but the thought of drinking animal blood disgusted her now. This was a hard trial she had to face, but she didn't see any other way than to just endure it and get used to foul-tasting beverages again. "I feel jittery and irritable," she told him with a pout when she noticed concern in his eyes - he must have noticed her tensing up.

A comforting smile returned to his face - a wonderfully reassuring smile that told her it would be all right. "It'll stop soon."

* * *

Tanya arrived in the early morning hours of the next day. They heard the screeching of tires and after one short honk, the car came to a full stop and the engine died.

She climbed out of a big, black Hummer, and Emmett's eyes almost bulged out of their sockets when he saw it. The two were already in a heated discussion about the vehicle when Carlisle, Rose and Esme walked out of the house and onto the porch.

"Hey, how dare you buy a car like that and not even let me drive it?" They heard him ask.

"I didn't buy it - it's rented," she retorted and grinned at her sturdy cousin who had a look of disbelief on his face.

He huffed once and turned to the side, before looking back at her and basically demanding like a five-year-old, "Let me drive it."

Shaking her head, she replied, "No."

He crossed his arms before saying, "_Let me drive it._"

She was still grinning and obviously enjoyed denying him his wish to drive the huge car. "No."

He uncrossed his arms with a groan. "Tanya, come on!" At least he didn't stomp his foot.

"No-oh," she said, clearly amused, even though her gleeful grin would have been answer enough.

"Awww ...," Em moaned and his shoulders sagged.

At that moment Maddie came running out of the house and her face was practically beaming with excitement. "A Hummer? You came here in a Hummer?! Oh my God, can I drive it?"

"Of course you can!" Tanya laughed and opened her arms in time so she could hug the smiling girl that ran right at her. There was some tenseness, she noticed, but since she knew what had happened here she was sure it came from the fear of slipping again, especially with humans living so close nearby. And that explained why she didn't breathe. "You can drive the last few miles to the house, how's that?"

"Yay!"

Emmett's jaw dropped. "Hey!" How could she allow someone with no driving experience to drive it, but refused to let him take it for a spin?

"You have your own car," Maddie reminded him before poking out her tongue at him, completely excited that Tanya would be cool enough to let her get in behind the wheel again. Nobody else trusted her to not crash their cars – like she was someone who tended to break everything she touched, pfft. That was Emmett's job.

Emmett made to grab her tongue but she pulled it back in time, and then he started chasing her around the car.

Tanya clapped her hands together to gain their attention again. "Hello? ... have you packed everything? Then let's go!"

When he heard that their relative from Alaska wanted to leave before even properly saying hello to them, Carlisle descended the few steps of the porch and approached her and his two children. It felt like it was his turn to say something, and more importantly, greet Tanya – the woman could be a bit 'too spontaneous' at times. "Tanya, you just arrived here. Please, come in and take a seat, it's been too long."

She took her eyes off Maddie and Emmett and seemingly noticed Carlisle for the first time. "Oh, well hello Carlisle!" she greeted him before giving him an apologetic look. "I promised Maddie she would get a huge grizzly to feed on today. And I really don't want to drive while the streets are busy."

"That wouldn't be advisable, I agree," he uttered and when he was close enough, hugged the blonde vampire he had known for what felt like an eternity. It was comforting to know that there were people who would never change; people he could count on when times were difficult and people he could call his family. Tanya and her coven were older than he was, more experienced when it came to their kind and their vampire nature and he really hoped that his family could still feel the same excitement over each new day and be as curious as Tanya was when they would reach her age. He really hoped he could keep his family save for at least the next one thousand years.

"Tanya, are you sure this isn't a problem for you?" Esme walked up to them, Rose following close on her heels. Esme's eyes showed unease and concern instead of the joy they usually held whenever she met one of their close friends again, especially when they were practically family.

"Esme!" Tanya exclaimed and embraced the woman like she always did when they met again. When she pulled away, she remembered the look in Esme's eyes and the question she had asked her. "Wait ... you mean, picking her up? No, of course not! I'm excited that we'll have her for two more weeks than planned. It tends to get a little dull and way too quiet at home ... now I understand why you have so many of those." She pointed with her thumb in the direction where Emmett and Maddie were currently standing, and the smile she gave Esme obviously seemed to work as she started to relax slightly. Then Tanya greeted Rosalie the same way and even let out a laugh when she noticed Rose letting out a silent snort of amusement.

Emmett must have heard part of the talk, as he immediately walked over to them and put an arm around Rose's shoulders while asking, "You do realise that we are adults, don't you?"

"Rose? Yes. You? Sorry, I'm not too sure about that. Maddie tells me a lot, and -" in midsentence she directed her gaze at Maddie. "Hey, where is your bag? Are you finished packing or do you need me to help you?"

Maddie shook her head. "I already packed everything," she told her and shoved her hands into the front pocket of her hoodie.

"Then get a move on, chop-chop!" Tanya called and clapped her hands twice to make her hurry. "Grizzlies don't wait forever, Mad!"

"Ok, I'll go get it."

"I help you," Emmett said and ran after her back into the house. It was better to not leave her unattended, but he also knew that she didn't want to be alone in case she would suddenly smell humans. She only breathed when she needed to speak, but still – better safe than sorry.

A moment later they emerged again, Emmett carrying her luggage like the good, big brother that he was. The atmosphere changed now that they were about to leave and Esme's eyes seemed to suddenly tear up, so she tensed a little when her children came closer as she tried to blink the venom away.

"Esme, you'll see her again soon," Tanya whispered in an attempt to console her overly emotional cousin.

"Yes, I know."

"You can visit us anytime you want, we'll always have a guest room ready for you in case you want to stop by. You could spend the rest of your holidays with us."

"They just came here," Emmett remarked, looking at Tanya like he thought her idea was just plain silly. He placed his sister's suitcase into the trunk of the one car he wouldn't be able to drive, closed it and turned around to look at the others.

"I just wanted to offer, think about it. And I meant all of you, Emmett. I'm sure you miss our Alaskan grizzly bears, don't you?" she asked with a knowing smile.

He felt venom pool in his mouth at the mention of these heavenly creatures, but he didn't get to reply because while he was swallowing the excessive saliva down, Maddie reached them.

"I'm ready, let's go," she said and was immediately buried in her mother's arms. This whole ordeal must be hardest on her, it seemed.

When Esme released her again, Maddie took her time to hug the rest of the family and listen to their words of encouragement. But after each person she said goodbye to, Esme was suddenly in front of her again, hugging her and telling her it would be all right.

It got a bit too much, so Tanya just pushed Maddie in the direction of the passenger door of the car and then took a moment to say goodbye to the rest of the family herself.

She gave Rose, Emmett and Carlisle a hug first, because she wanted to save Esme for last.

"Esme, don't make her feel bad for leaving. Remember what I told you, you are welcome to come by and spend the rest of your holidays with us. Think about it," she said after pulling back from their embrace, then turned around, walked to the driver's side of the car and got in behind the wheel.

Maddie was already buckled up, her hands clasped together in her lap and her lips pressed tightly together, making them appear white. The drive was obviously making her nervous, as they would probably pass a few humans on their drive up to Alaska, but Tanya was sure that she'd be able to distract and calm her enough so that that wouldn't be an issue. Maybe that was a bit short-sighted, but she had a good feeling about this. Besides, she knew the girl would hold her breath and try to keep her head down, so she should be fine.

"Hey, you don't need to use a seatbelt when you're driving with me." Tanya nudged Maddie in the side, winked at her and started the car. They drove off, waving to the rest of the family standing on the porch until they couldn't see them anymore.

"Why so glum?" Tanya asked after she shot the girl little sideways glances until she just couldn't keep herself from asking any more.

"Tanya...," she whispered, "I did something really bad."

"You had some blood, no biggie. Would you like to guess how many humans I drained and killed over the last one thousand years?" Tanya seemed to be completely excited about that topic, but it was just her way of downplaying something or trying to cheer someone up.

Maddie shook her head while pulling at the hem of her hoodie. "Not that. Well, that was pretty bad, but I'm talking about something else."

"Like what?"

"I … I kicked Emmy in the balls."

Tanya sucked in a breath and then slowly released it while shaking her head. "Oh, don't do that to guys, Mad. That hurts them, you know."

Maddie groaned and rolled her eyes at her. "I _know_! But I wasn't doing it on purpose ... ok, I probably was, but I wasn't doing it consciously, I guess."

"Oh, it happened when you slipped?" Leave it to Tanya to laugh about something like that. Yes, she was laughing. "Then don't you worry, that happens. I've ripped our kind to shreds when I was in bloodlust mode, so kicking someone really isn't that bad. Besides, he looked fine just now. Pff, he probably didn't even feel it," Tanya snorted.

Maddie distorted her mouth and she was still looking rather uncomfortable and embarrassed. "He couldn't even stand straight and was touching it all the time," she admitted to her and started chewing on her thumbnail like it would make the memory less awkward.

Tanya smirked at her. "That's what guys do, if you kick them or not. They love doing that, so don't worry about his balls anymore. Instead you should focus on enjoying the drive with me!"

Maddie looked like she was thinking about it for a moment.

"Hm, okay," she said and shrugged her shoulders, then unfastened her seatbelt, kicked her shoes off and put her feet on the dashboard, getting comfortable for the long drive up to Denali.

* * *

**Ok, guys. Turns out there will be one more chapter. I didn't know before (well, I did know what would happen, but I didn't know that this chapter would turn out to be a complete chapter... ah well, I could have ended this story with the last chapter but because I had the next chapter in mind, I didn't. This here was just meant to be a little... part of the next chapter... kinda. Ok, that sounds like it doesn't make any sense, but it definitely does in my head, trust me!), but somehow Emmett and Carlisle want to talk. So that's what the next chapter will be about. A talk. If you're not interested in reading that then... oh, I'll post it anyways. Nevermind.  
**

**Thanks for reading, guys, I'll have the last chapter up this weekend or next week!**


	24. Chapter 24

They stood on the front porch, waving until Maddie and Tanya were out of sight.

It was a weird feeling for Esme - she hadn't seen the girl for two weeks, and now it would be more than two months until she would be able to spend time with her again. But she couldn't ignore the fact that her daughter was suffering and needed to go somewhere where she wouldn't be tempted by the smell of blood. She knew that Denali would do her good and that she was in good hands with their relatives as she had spent so much time with them already and they had guided her through her newborn years.

Rose turned around and headed inside as standing on the porch staring down the path couldn't exactly be considered one of her favourite past times and she was actually looking forward to spending the rest of the day in her room minding her own business. The past few days had been stressful and now that her sister had made the right choice for herself to go seclude herself from humans to gain her former self-control back, there was nothing for her to worry about anymore. Tanya would be their best choice to help her process this experience and assure her that it was not her fault and nothing but an accident, because many times it had become obvious that her way of seeing things appealed to Maddie. She and the rest of the coven had taught her everything she needed to know apart from the little 'orientation' they had given her in the beginning, and Rose was immensely glad that she had chosen their relatives to take care of her a few years ago.

"Emmett, how would you like going fishing?" Carlisle suggested, making his wife look up at him with a slight frown. She had hoped he would spend some time consoling her but she caught herself before she would say anything as she didn't want to cut the time he had with his children short. He was working so much and she had realised over the years that with each addition to the family the time Carlisle spend with each of their wonderful children got remarkably less.

The young, dark-haired boy's eyes widened at hearing his father's suggestion and his reply followed immediately. "Great!" he exclaimed and smiled at his father, "I'll go get the fishing rods!"

While Emmett headed for the garage to collect the fishing poles his father had purchased and brought to their holiday home for them to try out, Esme turned to look at her husband and gave him a little smile.

Carlisle reached out and cupped her cheek in one hand, giving her a smile of his own. "Are you all right, my love?" he asked her, raising his eyebrows in the process as he felt that something was troubling his beautiful wife. It wasn't hard to put two and two together as to what might be the reason for her sadness, and he hoped dearly that she would find it in her to feel relief and pride instead.

"Of course I am, darling. I just did not expect our vacation to turn out like this."

"We have raised very intelligent and responsible children, love, we should consider ourselves blessed. The outcome could have been very different, and I thank God that our children acted the way they did."

"Me, too," she said and nodded her head, then let out a deep, crestfallen sigh. "It's still difficult for me to accept that she is turning to Tanya for guidance and advice, especially now that she has experienced bloodlust. This was the first time it has happened... I just thought that at moments like these she would want her parents. But instead she picked up the phone and called Tanya. She's always turning to our relatives or Rose and Em when something happens."

Shaking his head, he realised that maybe it was a sense of injured pride weighing down on his wife. "We should be glad that she did instead of trying to suffer through it here in this place. The humans in this area are not living directly next to us but on the other side of the lake, still I can understand that it scares her. Now she knows what she has been missing out on all those years - but nevertheless she chose us. She chose to separate herself form humans and try to continue this life with us, even though feeding off animals is not satisfying for her and it will be even less satisfying now. Besides, I don't want her to be in pain and feel unwell. She has a lot of people she can turn to and she can really trust - that is a good thing, Esme."

"You are right, of course you are right... she even said that she had been scared she would ruin our vacation if she'd ask us to drive her up to Denali."

Carlisle gave a laugh as he put an arm around his wife's shoulders and then placed a gentle kiss on her temple. "See what she did? I do understand why you are feeling a little glum, but I think her calling Tanya just shows that she cares about us. I would be far more concerned if she would refuse to talk to anyone about this."

"We could have helped her as well. I have fed before, Emmett, too, - you know the taste and the temptation of human blood also."

Carlisle sighed sadly as it seemed that his wife was trying to give him reasons as to why they were the right persons to help her - it was silly, because she knew he wouldn't call them back and that it wasn't for him to decide where she would be most comfortable at the moment.

"True as that may be, she went with her gut and made the decision that she felt was right for her and we should support that. The slip-up is stressful and probably very scary for her - she trusts Tanya and the rest of the coven to help her just like they had done when she had been in a similar condition," he explained, hoping his wife would understand just how important their relatives were for the girl. "You know how difficult the newborn years can be for a young person, especially when thrown into this life without ever having been given a choice."

A silence spread between them as the memory brought a strong sense of guilt which had not diminshed over the years and probably never would.

Esme's expression turned thoughtful and she grabbed both her husband's hands, giving them a light squeeze. "We haven't been to Alaska in a while, love," she suddenly mused, clearly unable to get her maternal feelings under control.

Carlisle closed his eyes and internally groaned.

_Oh dear, and now she wanted to convince him that she wanted to head up to Alaska just because she missed the place..._

He was sure she had been listening to what he was trying to tell her and even had the same thoughts on this, but the worry she was experiencing wasn't easing up just yet. That might still take a little while.

"I promise you that she'll be fine. Just because you cannot see her in person doesn't mean that she isn't all right and well taken care of."

At that moment Emmett emerged from the garage, holding two long fishing rods in his hands and giving Carlisle a dimpled grin.

"Let's go and see who's the best angler."

Carlisle smiled at his son, then gazed into his wife's beautiful eyes. "Make yourself comfortable on the couch, put your feet up and relax, Esme. You'll need the energy for when the next school year starts," he said and winked at her, then gave her a kiss on the lips and followed after his son leading the way.

* * *

Emmett and Carlisle sat on the jetty, enjoying the early morning and the peacefulness it brought. For the past hour they hadn't spoken much but the silence between them wasn't uncomfortable. It felt like an eternity had passed since the last time they had actually spent some time together, just the two of them, so this time now was special.

Still, considering that it was Emmett sitting next to him, Carlisle started to wonder as to why his usually mouthy jokester of a son was suddenly acting so subdued.

"You are awfully quiet, son," Carlisle remarked with a smirk. "Have your holidays been too relaxing or too exciting so far?"

"A mixture of both, I guess," Emmett replied, glancing at his still smirking father for a moment before letting his gaze drop.

His odd behaviour made Carlisle frown and he eyed his son with a sinking feeling that something apart from the slip-up had occured while their three children had spent their vacation in this place. Something he didn't know about...

"Pops, I have to tell you something," Emmett suddenly mumbled after letting out a deep sigh. His tone of voice was serious and Carlisle mentally prepared himself for the worst because it had to be something grave when it was making Emmett uncomfortable talking about it.

"Sure, son, you know you can tell me anything."

Scratching the back of his head, the muscular boy cleared his throat and gave his father a nervous look. "Well, at first I actually didn't plan on telling you about it, but Rose said we'd have to let you know. Maybe she's right... and I am feeling guilty."

Now that did not serve to soothe Carlisle's nerves - quite the opposite was the case if he had to be honest with himself. "... yes?" he asked and tensed a little as he noticed how impatience had managed to creep into his voice.

"Um ... Rose spanked Maddie."

Carlisle's eyebrows shot up.

"Because I told her to," Emmett added.

When Carlisle didn't say anything as he was still trying comprehend what his son had just told him, Emmett just continued. "Maddie was out of line ... but it was my fault."

To make sure he wouldn't give him any more information that would only serve to confuse him further, he held up a hand to silence him for a moment. "Son ...," Carlisle said and rubbed his chin while looking out at the calm surface of the lake and the last few wafts of mist that he could detect in the distance. His eyes were slightly narrowed. "What exactly happened here?"

"Don't be mad at Rose, she was only doing what I asked her to do. And Maddie acted out because of me, so... I think I really screwed up."

Exactly what he had hoped wouldn't happen by asking him this simple question. Carlisle turned his head to look at his son who was sitting next to him and he let his voice take on a hint of sternness to remind him that it would be most helpful if he would give him proper answers. "Emmett..."

"I'm not sure, but maybe she even slipped because of me...," Emmett murmured, looking down at the cork handle of the fishing rod in his hands.

Clearing his throat loudly to make the boy look at him, Carlisle was relieved when Em's eyes met his because that way it was more likely that he would actually hear and answer a direct question. "Emmett, start from the beginning. What happened?"

Emmett let out a sigh, then nodded his head. "It started when we came here. I didn't like seeing her with the human kids from around here," he admitted, immediately letting his father know that this piece of information was crucial for this little, unusual tale.

"And why is that?" Carlisle queried in a soft voice, even though he already had a hunch as to what the reason behind this would be. When his son's eyes narrowed and he suddenly glared at the cool lake water, he knew that he had been right about his assumption.

"Because she has us, she doesn't need any humans to keep her entertained. Besides, I promised I would watch her and take care of her."

"And letting her meet children her age would violate your promise?"

Emmett lifted his head and blinked at his father. "Well, yes. She's just a -"

"- child," Carlisle finished before Emmett could say the word himself.

"Yes."

"Emmett," Carlisle sighed, "Maddie is old enough to choose for herself what she wants to do and where she wants to go. She has matured over the last few years and she has mentally reached her physical age."

A snort escaped the burly boy, and he replied in an almost defiant voice, "That doesn't make her a grown-up, she's still a child then."

"Em-"

"You haven't seen them, _I have_!"

Placing a hand on his son's shoulder in hopes it would calm him some, Carlisle gave him a sad look while shaking his head. "You aren't helping her by making her stay home just for the simple reason that you don't like them. She needs to make a few experiences herself, learn to reckon up somebody's character without our help."

"They were getting drunk and she drove a Bentley," Emmett informed him with a cocked eyebrow and a smirk that could maybe be described as smug.

Feeling his eyes widen, Carlisle put his fishing rod next to himself on the wooden jetty and asked, "I beg your pardon?"

"Oh, and they went swimming without any clothes on and wanted her to join." It was definitely a smug smirk now as it had just gotten more distinctive and its effect was wonderfully enhanced by Emmett discarding his own fishing rod and crossing his arms over his chest. He even raised an eyebrow like he was curious what his father would have to say about that now. _Needs to make a few experiences herself, my ass... _

"Um...," Carlisle uttered, momentarily at a loss for words. It took him a moment to come back to the original reason why Emmett wanted to start this talk with him.

"And what exactly was the reason why you and Rosalie decided that she was in dire need of some discipline?"

The smugness vanished from Emmett's face and he uncrossed his arms as he was reminded of something he was neither proud of nor fancied remembering. "She made me spend the night with Rose, tricked me into believing that she came home on time and that I even talked to her," he told Carlisle and had to remind himself that he wasn't tattling. They had taken care of this and Maddie was on her way to Alaska where she would spend the next few months, so he was certain that briefing their parents about that night would not have any negative repercussions for the little one. For him - that was very likely, he figured. "It was a lie... Rose realised that it was a lie – we had no clue where she was. She didn't even pick up her phone... and had switched our phones off."

That did sound a little bit more serious than what Carlisle had thought. That was one of the worst offences any of his children could ever commit - it was a blatant ignorance of the rule to always be reachable. And she had made it impossible for herself or others to call Emmett and Rosalie in case something had happened and they would have needed to be informed.

"She had switched your phones off," he repeated, sounding like he was not amused.

"I think she wanted to make sure Alice wouldn't be able to warn us," he told him, then ducked his head as he realised what he had just said. That hadn't been too smart, so he decided to just go on telling what had happened next so he would hopefully forget. "Rose wanted her to call you and tell you what happened, so you could talk to her and deal with this as soon as you would come here. Maddie refused."

"Why didn't you call me then?" Carlisle asked, frowning.

"Well, Rose said it was her responsibility to do it. Maddie was insisting that she was all grown-up, and that's why Rose said she should take responsibility for her actions and admit to her mistakes."

He was glad that he could count on Rosalie to remain level-headed and act responsible by telling her little sister to do what was right. Too bad that it didn't seem to have worked. "I never got a phone call from her."

Emmett bit his lip before shaking his head. "No, because she didn't call. She was just crying as she felt so guilty and she was refusing to feed, up to the point where we couldn't let her go on like that. She was in pain, Carlisle, and it would have been too dangerous for her and the humans living nearby." It didn't happen often that something really upset Emmett, but right now he was looking at his father with honest concern and worry in his eyes.

Reaching out, Carlisle placed a hand on his son's shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. "I understand."

For Emmett it was still not clear if his father had truly understood why they had eventually taken action. It was important that he knew, so if he would feel that they had crossed a line, he would still know which motives had made them act. "We didn't mean to betray her and call you behind her back, and we certainly didn't want her to keep her self-destructive behaviour up. We felt that giving her this option was worth a shot."

His explanation was met with silence, because his father seemed to be deep in thought all of a sudden. "Are you mad?" Emmett asked carefully, needing to know what his father thought about them disciplining the girl. Enduring his father's anger and disappointment was always tough, even though he would accept it for the decisions they had made. Neither he nor Rose had known what else to do, but Emmett had been prepared to accept consequences as nothing could be more painful than watching someone he loved being in pain.

"Did she agree?"

That question and his father's still thoughtful facial expression confused him. "Huh?"

"Did she agree when you told her you would be handling her discipline?" Carlisle asked and looked at him, his voice soft.

Emmett looked puzzled for a moment and he rubbed the side of his face while answering, "Yes. Rose told her that it couldn't go on like that, and then told her what options she had. She let her choose, gave her time so she could be sure she would really think everything through and come to the right decision." He let his hand sink back to his lap and he hefted his eyes to his now fidgeting hands. "We didn't want to cross a line or something. Rose told her it would be a one-off only, and next time she wouldn't have that option anymore. I think the whole ordeal stressed Rose more that it actually stressed Maddie … because afterwards she fed and she seemed really relieved. Now I feel that we crossed a line, I think Rose does, too, because she insisted that we tell you about it. I just want you to know that it was my idea, not Rosalie's. I take full responsibility for this."

"So Madeline agreed, you said," Carlisle mused, feeling a slight breeze touch his face and ruffle his hair. He inhaled out of habit, and the smell of the lake water and the faint scent of humans entered his nose. It distracted him from the talk for a moment as relief washed over him that his daughter had decided to leave this place. Being exposed to even this faint smell after just having tried human blood... it would be incredibly difficult.

"Yes."

Emmett's voice effectively brought him back to the topic at hand. "And this was a singular occurence, you are not suddenly planning on keeping things from us and dealing with everything yourselves."

His eyes were wide as he shook his head vehemently, holding his hands up in front of his chest. "No! No, we wouldn't do that. It's not like it was easy or anything. Heck, I would have never thought that taking care of her would be so difficult. But I did make it all worse … if I hadn't overreacted so much, she might have never felt the need to influence me into believing that she was home when she really wasn't."

"Having the responsibility for someone is never easy."

A look of remorse and embarrassment clouded Em's features. "I even managed to make her lose control over her ability. It just kicked in while we were arguing. Geez, if Rose hadn't noticed and intervened, then I would have seriously stuffed clothes into my a- … oh, nevermind."

"Emmett," Carlisle sighed, shaking his head sadly. "I think you and I need to have a little talk about your overprotectiveness and your temper, hm? If you are the one to blame for all these problems that have occured ..."

"But-"

"I cannot have you make your siblings miserable, just because you have trouble accepting that they might want to meet people outside of this family."

Hanging his head, he fixed his eyes on his hands once more before letting out a weak sigh. He nodded his head, but refused to look at his father. Not everything was _his_ fault... the porch-boy had started it.

Silence followed, making Emmett wonder just what Carlisle was thinking at the moment. He didn't need to wait long, because the musing voice of his father met his ears. "So she drove a Bentley, you said?"

His head shot back up, turning to the side to gape at him. The change of topic was a little too sudden for him, but he quickly caught himself and welcomed the reprieve from the uncomfortable talk. "Yup, big thing. Brandnew," he told him, his eyes bright as he remembered the beautiful car.

"Hm." Carlisle looked thoughtful again before tilting his head to the side and squinting at his son. "Did she like it?"

"What?"

"Did she like it?" Carlisle asked again, shrugging his shoulders like he didn't think his question was that weird.

He didn't know what his father was getting at and the frown on his face was proof of his inability to understand the sudden change. "I guess. Who wouldn't like it?"

"Hm." Again it became silent.

"Do you think she'd like to have one?"

Emmett leaned back on his elbows while he inhaled deeply, his eyes wide and clueless. "Pops, you just lost me ..."

Chuckling, Carlisle lightly smacked his boy's knee before giving it a light rub. "Well," he sighed. "she needs to have a car when she gets her license. I thought she would prefer something different, something smaller, but a Bentley is fine."

"She'll get a car?" Emmett asked and sat up straight again, his eyes showing curiosity as well as confusion. "We'll move in a few years."

"I am aware of that, but I don't think it would be fair to deny her the pleasure of driving. This is something we want to help her with. She has to pass up on so many things, we don't want her to miss out on driving on top of that. Besides, she'll need a car for the road trip Tanya is planning for her."

His eyes went wide. "A road trip?"

"Yes. When she turns 'sixteen', we'll probably be moving to another city. Tanya wants to take her one a road trip for a year. That way she can drive as much as she wants, they'll be able to spend time together and Maddie doesn't need to start out as thirteen again. I think she might like that idea."

Emmett nodded his head slowly, then let out a snort. "She really hated being thirteen."

"Yes, and I doubt that she wants a repeat of that time." He sure as hell didn't want a repeat of that time and he would bet that Esme didn't either.

Looking out at the lake again, Emmett suddenly sat up straight when he noticed something moving and grabbed his fishing rod. He reeled up the line, getting excited that he had actually caught something. His father tensed right beside him, stretching his neck to get a good look at his son's capture.

Em stood up, all the while trying to get whatever big fish it was he had caught closer to the jetty so he could get it out of the water. With a jolt, he pulled it out and before he could even realise what it was that was dangling from the hook, Carlisle started laughing.

"Well done, son, now you just need to catch the other one."

"At least I caught _something_, old man," he replied with a playful sneer, then sat down again and placed the dripping wet boot next to him on the jetty. _Aww man, it wasn't even his size!_

"Old junk doesn't count, we were aiming for something more _animal-like_," Carlisle pointed out, smiling at his son to hide his confusion that they must have somehow managed to unlearn how to fish.

"It's a _leather_ boot," Emmett retorted and grinned at his father. Yup, Emmett 1, the tattery old man 0. Leather was animal skin, after all.

"You are right, son, I am impressed with your catch," Carlisle told him with mock admiration.

Emmett's eyes shone bright and he nodded his head, before suddenly breaking out into a fit of laughter. When he managed to get it under control again, he sighed and said, "Pops, we suck at fishing."

"Yes, Em, we do," Carlisle agreed, then turned more serious again and put an arm around his shoulders. "I am glad that you told me about what happened."

"I am not completely sure yet, but I think I am, too," he replied, earning himself a smile from his father.

Patting his son's shoulder before dropping his arm back to his side, Carlisle said, "Come on, my boy, let's make sure that your mother isn't busying herself with packing our bags to go to Denali." He nudged him in the side with his elbow before looking down at their fishing rods and the saggy, old boot standing in between them. Yes, it was really sad, but somehow also really funny.

"I'm sure we'll find something that isn't quite as hard as fishing," Carlisle assured him, then stood up and walked a few steps. When he reached their driveway he suddenly heard a gush of water hitting the wooden planks and it made him turn back around to see what had happened.

Emmett held the boot in his hand, and now the jetty was completely wet. But what really made Carlisle shake his head and laugh out loud was the fact that there was a tiny, little fish flapping and contorting right in the spot that he had just occupied.

Emmett dropped the boot to his side. "Victory!" he shouted gleefully and raised his fists in the air because he had mastered this seemingly impossible task. To help the poor little fish back into the water, he picked it up but wasn't able to hold onto it. It slipped from his hands and dropped into his lap, drawing a high-pitched yelp from him. He hurriedly got up - the fish fell into the water as he did so - and he covered his chest with one hand while breathing quickly before an expression of relief appeared on his face.

Carlisle turned around again, chuckling to himself. He had no clue why Emmett would be so panic-stricken because of this tiny thing, but as soon as he reached the porch he heard him mutter something about some blasted vampire fish.

* * *

**And that was the last chapter, the story is complete!**

**I hope you had fun reading this little tale and thank you so much for your reviews :-)**


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